Las Vegas Sands (NYSE:LVS) Price Target Raised to $67.00

Las Vegas Sands (NYSE:LVS) had its price objective hoisted by Wells Fargo & Company from $66.00 to $67.00 in a research note published on Friday,MarketScreener reports. The firm currently has an equal weight rating on the casino operator’s stock.

LVS has been the subject of several other research reports. Mizuho increased their price objective on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $56.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 23rd. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Las Vegas Sands from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Saturday. Argus lifted their price target on Las Vegas Sands from $65.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 1st. Seaport Global Securities cut their price target on Las Vegas Sands from $75.00 to $72.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 14th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded Las Vegas Sands from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $64.00 to $80.00 in a report on Monday, December 15th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Las Vegas Sands has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $69.05.

Las Vegas Sands Trading Down 2.8%

LVS opened at $58.93 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $65.21 and its two-hundred day moving average is $57.53. The firm has a market cap of $39.84 billion, a PE ratio of 26.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 0.97. Las Vegas Sands has a twelve month low of $30.18 and a twelve month high of $70.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 7.42, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 0.89.

Las Vegas Sands (NYSE:LVS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 22nd. The casino operator reported $0.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.62 by $0.16. Las Vegas Sands had a return on equity of 73.14% and a net margin of 12.69%.The company had revenue of $3.33 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.04 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.44 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 24.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that Las Vegas Sands will post 2.6 EPS for the current year.

Las Vegas Sands Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 12th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 4th were issued a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, November 4th. Las Vegas Sands’s dividend payout ratio is presently 45.25%.

Insider Transactions at Las Vegas Sands

In other news, COO Patrick Dumont sold 210,305 shares of Las Vegas Sands stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.96, for a total transaction of $14,712,937.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 446,608 shares in the company, valued at approximately $31,244,695.68. The trade was a 32.01% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Robert G. Goldstein sold 1,198,650 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $66.68, for a total value of $79,925,982.00. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 5,182,053 shares of company stock valued at $333,348,399 in the last quarter. 1.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Las Vegas Sands

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in LVS. Mackenzie Financial Corp raised its position in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 0.3% in the third quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 53,945 shares of the casino operator’s stock valued at $2,902,000 after purchasing an additional 156 shares during the period. Westside Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in Las Vegas Sands by 48.0% in the 3rd quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 512 shares of the casino operator’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 166 shares during the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Las Vegas Sands by 7.8% in the 3rd quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 2,449 shares of the casino operator’s stock valued at $132,000 after acquiring an additional 177 shares during the period. Alps Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in Las Vegas Sands by 2.4% in the 3rd quarter. Alps Advisors Inc. now owns 8,528 shares of the casino operator’s stock valued at $459,000 after acquiring an additional 197 shares during the period. Finally, Horizon Kinetics Asset Management LLC lifted its position in Las Vegas Sands by 0.3% during the second quarter. Horizon Kinetics Asset Management LLC now owns 61,993 shares of the casino operator’s stock worth $2,697,000 after acquiring an additional 213 shares during the last quarter. 39.16% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.