Las Vegas Sands Corp. $LVS Shares Sold by Harvest Portfolios Group Inc.

Harvest Portfolios Group Inc. reduced its stake in shares of Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE:LVS) by 22.5% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 35,245 shares of the casino operator’s stock after selling 10,226 shares during the quarter. Harvest Portfolios Group Inc.’s holdings in Las Vegas Sands were worth $1,896,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in LVS. Total Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Las Vegas Sands during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Westside Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in Las Vegas Sands by 48.0% during the third quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 512 shares of the casino operator’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 166 shares during the last quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Las Vegas Sands during the third quarter worth $33,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in Las Vegas Sands by 549.5% in the third quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 630 shares of the casino operator’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 533 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MAI Capital Management increased its position in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 78.4% in the third quarter. MAI Capital Management now owns 710 shares of the casino operator’s stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 312 shares in the last quarter. 39.16% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Las Vegas Sands Trading Up 1.3%

Shares of Las Vegas Sands stock opened at $56.67 on Friday. Las Vegas Sands Corp. has a fifty-two week low of $30.18 and a fifty-two week high of $70.45. The business’s fifty day moving average is $59.81 and its two-hundred day moving average is $58.89. 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 cap of $38.08 billion, a PE ratio of 24.22, a P/E/G ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 0.93.

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

Las Vegas Sands Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 18th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 9th were given a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.1%. This is a boost from Las Vegas Sands’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 9th. Las Vegas Sands’s dividend payout ratio is 51.28%.

Insider Activity at Las Vegas Sands

In other news, major shareholder Miriam Adelson sold 77,991 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $67.56, for a total value of $5,269,071.96. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 23,333,441 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,576,407,273.96. This trade represents a 0.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Irwin Chafetz sold 30,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction 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 directly owned 70,949 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,949,402.24. The trade was a 29.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 3,024,508 shares of company stock valued at $203,306,334 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 1.20% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

LVS has been the topic of several recent research reports. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Las Vegas Sands in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price target on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $78.00 to $72.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 30th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $67.00 to $68.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price objective on Las Vegas Sands from $75.00 to $72.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Finally, Citigroup increased their target price on Las Vegas Sands from $75.50 to $76.75 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, December 11th. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $68.55.

Las Vegas Sands Company 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.