Exchange Traded Concepts LLC Lowers Holdings in Las Vegas Sands Corp. $LVS

Exchange Traded Concepts LLC reduced its stake in shares of Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE:LVS) by 31.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 24,249 shares of the casino operator’s stock after selling 10,876 shares during the period. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC’s holdings in Las Vegas Sands were worth $1,578,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Allianz Asset Management GmbH raised its position in Las Vegas Sands by 358.4% during 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. boosted its position in Las Vegas Sands by 124.4% in the 2nd quarter. Maple Rock Capital Partners Inc. now owns 1,003,880 shares of the casino operator’s stock worth $43,679,000 after purchasing an additional 556,440 shares in the last quarter. Donoghue Forlines LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Las Vegas Sands during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $2,143,000. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its stake in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 99.5% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 934,927 shares of the casino operator’s stock worth $60,901,000 after purchasing an additional 466,330 shares during the period. Finally, National Pension Service purchased a new position in shares of Las Vegas Sands during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $1,262,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 39.16% of the company’s stock.

Las Vegas Sands Trading Up 0.8%

Shares of NYSE:LVS opened at $54.33 on Thursday. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $55.78 and its 200-day moving average price is $58.74. Las Vegas Sands Corp. has a 1 year low of $30.18 and a 1 year high of $70.45. The firm has a market capitalization of $36.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 7.58, a current ratio of 1.14 and a quick ratio of 1.13.

Las Vegas Sands (NYSE:LVS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The casino operator reported $0.85 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.77 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $3.65 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.33 billion. Las Vegas Sands had a net margin of 12.50% and a return on equity of 91.40%. The firm’s revenue was up 26.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.54 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Las Vegas Sands Corp. will post 2.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal 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 given a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.2%. This is a positive change from Las Vegas Sands’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 9th. Las Vegas Sands’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 51.28%.

Insider Activity at Las Vegas Sands

In other news, CEO Patrick Dumont sold 60,165 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 17th. The shares were 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 owned 511,942 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $28,028,824.50. The trade was a 10.52% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 1.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on LVS shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $70.00 to $71.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 23rd. Barclays set a $64.00 price target on shares of Las Vegas Sands in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price objective on shares of 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. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $67.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, December 8th. Finally, Citigroup raised their target price on Las Vegas Sands from $75.50 to $76.75 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 11th. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, 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.