Las Vegas Sands Corp. $LVS Shares Sold by Cim Investment Management Inc.

Cim Investment Management Inc. cut its holdings in shares of Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE:LVS) by 50.6% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 13,063 shares of the casino operator’s stock after selling 13,389 shares during the quarter. Cim Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Las Vegas Sands were worth $703,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its position in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 8.4% during the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 31,251 shares of the casino operator’s stock worth $1,207,000 after acquiring an additional 2,418 shares during the period. Woodline Partners LP boosted its holdings in Las Vegas Sands by 38.9% in the first quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 29,032 shares of the casino operator’s stock valued at $1,122,000 after purchasing an additional 8,132 shares during the period. Candriam S.C.A. grew its stake in Las Vegas Sands by 46.9% during the 2nd quarter. Candriam S.C.A. now owns 29,903 shares of the casino operator’s stock worth $1,301,000 after purchasing an additional 9,549 shares in the last quarter. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A. grew its stake in Las Vegas Sands by 4.1% during the 2nd quarter. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A. now owns 12,591 shares of the casino operator’s stock worth $548,000 after purchasing an additional 501 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS increased its holdings in Las Vegas Sands by 5.9% during the 2nd quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS now owns 83,184 shares of the casino operator’s stock worth $3,619,000 after purchasing an additional 4,598 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 39.16% of the company’s stock.

Las Vegas Sands Price Performance

Las Vegas Sands stock opened at $54.20 on Wednesday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $57.19 and a 200-day moving average of $58.88. Las Vegas Sands Corp. has a 52-week low of $30.18 and a 52-week high of $70.45. The company has a quick ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 7.58. The firm has a market capitalization of $36.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.16, a PEG ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 0.88.

Las Vegas Sands (NYSE:LVS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The casino operator reported $0.85 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.77 by $0.08. Las Vegas Sands had a net margin of 12.50% and a return on equity of 91.40%. The firm had revenue of $3.65 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.33 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.54 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 26.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that Las Vegas Sands Corp. will post 2.6 EPS for the current year.

Las Vegas Sands Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 18th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 9th were paid a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.2%. This is an increase from Las Vegas Sands’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 9th. Las Vegas Sands’s payout ratio is 51.28%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

LVS has been the subject of several recent research reports. Wall Street Zen cut Las Vegas Sands from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped 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 note on Friday, January 23rd. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Las Vegas Sands in a report on Monday, December 29th. Barclays set a $64.00 price target on shares of Las Vegas Sands in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Finally, Argus lowered their target price on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $80.00 to $60.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $68.55.

Las Vegas Sands Profile

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.