Canada Pension Plan Investment Board Acquires New Holdings in Las Vegas Sands Corp. $LVS

Canada Pension Plan Investment Board bought a new stake in shares of Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE:LVS) in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund bought 1,452,001 shares of the casino operator’s stock, valued at approximately $67,068,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of LVS. International Assets Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Las Vegas Sands in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. DV Equities LLC acquired a new position in shares of Las Vegas Sands during the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. Towarzystwo Funduszy Inwestycyjnych PZU SA acquired a new position in shares of Las Vegas Sands during the fourth quarter worth approximately $29,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB boosted its position in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 254.8% during the fourth quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 557 shares of the casino operator’s stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 400 shares during the period. Finally, IFP Advisors Inc grew its holdings in Las Vegas Sands by 182.4% in the 3rd quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 672 shares of the casino operator’s stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 434 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 39.16% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently commented on LVS. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Las Vegas Sands in a research report on Friday, August 21st. Argus lowered Las Vegas Sands from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Bank of America decreased their price target on Las Vegas Sands from $70.00 to $60.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, July 20th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on Las Vegas Sands from $68.00 to $61.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, July 27th. Finally, Zacks Research cut shares of Las Vegas Sands from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Las Vegas Sands has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $61.88.

Las Vegas Sands Price Performance

NYSE:LVS opened at $44.12 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $46.48 and its 200 day moving average price is $51.06. The firm has a market cap of $28.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.17, a PEG ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 0.85. Las Vegas Sands Corp. has a 52-week low of $43.92 and a 52-week high of $70.45. The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 15.27.

Las Vegas Sands (NYSE:LVS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The casino operator reported $0.59 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.76 by ($0.17). Las Vegas Sands had a net margin of 12.59% and a return on equity of 133.90%. The business had revenue of $3.15 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.31 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.66 earnings per share. Las Vegas Sands’s revenue was down .7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Las Vegas Sands Corp. will post 3.09 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Las Vegas Sands Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 12th. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 4th were issued a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 4th. Las Vegas Sands’s payout ratio is presently 46.69%.

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.