Las Vegas Sands’ (LVS) Hold Rating Reiterated at Jefferies Financial Group

Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed their hold rating on shares of Las Vegas Sands (NYSE:LVS) in a research note released on Monday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Jefferies Financial Group currently has a $61.00 target price on the casino operator’s stock, down from their previous target price of $72.00.

A number of other research analysts also recently issued reports on the company. Mizuho raised their price target on Las Vegas Sands from $63.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Macquarie Infrastructure restated an “outperform” rating and set a $70.00 price target on shares of Las Vegas Sands in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Citigroup raised their price target on Las Vegas Sands from $75.50 to $76.75 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Las Vegas Sands from $70.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 23rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Las Vegas Sands from $67.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $67.92.

Las Vegas Sands Trading Up 1.0%

NYSE:LVS opened at $54.58 on Monday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $55.17 and its 200 day moving average price is $58.79. The company has a market capitalization of $36.22 billion, a PE ratio of 23.33, a P/E/G ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a quick ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 7.58. Las Vegas Sands has a 52-week low of $30.52 and a 52-week high of $70.45.

Las Vegas Sands (NYSE:LVS) last released its quarterly 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 firm had revenue of $3.65 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.33 billion. Las Vegas Sands had a return on equity of 91.40% and a net margin of 12.50%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 26.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.54 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Las Vegas Sands will post 2.6 EPS 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 dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 9th. This is a positive change from Las Vegas Sands’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. Las Vegas Sands’s payout ratio is 51.28%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Las Vegas Sands news, CEO Patrick Dumont sold 60,165 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.75, for a total transaction of $3,294,033.75. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 511,942 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $28,028,824.50. This trade represents a 10.52% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 1.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Las Vegas Sands

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Allianz Asset Management GmbH lifted its position in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 358.4% in the third quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 227,278 shares of the casino operator’s stock valued at $12,225,000 after acquiring an additional 177,695 shares in the last quarter. Maple Rock Capital Partners Inc. lifted its position in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 124.4% in the second quarter. Maple Rock Capital Partners Inc. now owns 1,003,880 shares of the casino operator’s stock valued at $43,679,000 after acquiring an additional 556,440 shares in the last quarter. Donoghue Forlines LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Las Vegas Sands in the third quarter valued at $2,143,000. Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its position in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 99.5% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 934,927 shares of the casino operator’s stock valued at $60,901,000 after acquiring an additional 466,330 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its position in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 2,655.3% in the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 878,022 shares of the casino operator’s stock valued at $57,150,000 after acquiring an additional 846,155 shares in the last quarter. 39.16% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.