Principal Financial Group Inc. Has $19.37 Million Holdings in Las Vegas Sands Corp. $LVS

Principal Financial Group Inc. decreased its holdings in Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE:LVS) by 12.7% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 360,066 shares of the casino operator’s stock after selling 52,240 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned 0.05% of Las Vegas Sands worth $19,368,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Total Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Las Vegas Sands in the second quarter worth approximately $25,000. Root Financial Partners LLC bought a new stake in Las Vegas Sands during the third quarter worth $33,000. Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in Las Vegas Sands in the 2nd quarter valued at $41,000. CYBER HORNET ETFs LLC bought a new stake in shares of Las Vegas Sands in the 2nd quarter worth $42,000. Finally, FNY Investment Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Las Vegas Sands in the second quarter valued at about $43,000. 39.16% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Las Vegas Sands Trading Up 1.6%

NYSE:LVS opened at $57.83 on Monday. Las Vegas Sands Corp. has a 12 month low of $30.18 and a 12 month high of $70.45. The company has a current ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 7.42. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $62.80 and its 200 day moving average is $58.47. The stock has a market capitalization of $39.10 billion, a PE ratio of 24.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 0.93.

Las Vegas Sands (NYSE:LVS) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The casino operator reported $0.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.77 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $3.65 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.33 billion. Las Vegas Sands had a return on equity of 87.01% and a net margin of 12.50%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 26.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.54 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Las Vegas Sands Corp. will post 2.6 earnings per share for the current year.

Las Vegas Sands Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, February 18th. Investors of record on Monday, February 9th will be paid a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 9th. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.1%. This is an increase from Las Vegas Sands’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. Las Vegas Sands’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 51.28%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Las Vegas Sands

In other news, CEO Robert G. Goldstein sold 1,198,650 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $66.68, for a total value of $79,925,982.00. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Irwin Chafetz sold 30,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.76, for a total transaction of $2,092,800.00. Following the sale, the director owned 70,949 shares in the company, valued at $4,949,402.24. The trade was a 29.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 3,082,053 shares of company stock valued at $207,130,199 in the last three months. 1.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

LVS has been the topic of several analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $67.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $70.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. Seaport Research Partners reduced their target price on Las Vegas Sands from $75.00 to $72.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 14th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price target on Las Vegas Sands from $76.00 to $77.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price objective on Las Vegas Sands from $67.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, December 8th. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $68.61.

About Las Vegas Sands

Las Vegas Sands (NYSE: LVS) is a global developer and operator of integrated resorts, focused on large-scale properties that combine casino gaming with hotels, convention and exhibition facilities, retail, dining, and entertainment. The company’s operations center on developing and managing full-service resort complexes that serve both leisure and business travelers, with emphasis on convention and trade-show business in addition to gaming revenue streams.

The company’s portfolio has included prominent properties in North America and Asia, most notably The Venetian Resort in Las Vegas and Marina Bay Sands in Singapore, along with a significant presence in Macau through multiple integrated resorts.