Janney Montgomery Scott LLC Sells 30,042 Shares of Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE:LVS)

Janney Montgomery Scott LLC reduced its position in Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE:LVS - Free Report) by 71.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 12,155 shares of the casino operator's stock after selling 30,042 shares during the quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC's holdings in Las Vegas Sands were worth $624,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new position in shares of Las Vegas Sands in the third quarter worth approximately $26,000. CVA Family Office LLC boosted its position in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 118.8% in the third quarter. CVA Family Office LLC now owns 560 shares of the casino operator's stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 304 shares during the period. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its position in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 73.5% in the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 583 shares of the casino operator's stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 247 shares during the period. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new position in shares of Las Vegas Sands in the third quarter worth approximately $34,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 40.1% in the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 849 shares of the casino operator's stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 243 shares during the period. 39.16% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Las Vegas Sands Price Performance

Las Vegas Sands stock traded up $0.68 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $41.93. 5,977,717 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,155,329. The company has a market cap of $30.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.28, a PEG ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 1.08. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $48.50 and a two-hundred day moving average of $46.92. The company has a quick ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.09. Las Vegas Sands Corp. has a 12-month low of $36.62 and a 12-month high of $56.60.

Las Vegas Sands (NYSE:LVS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The casino operator reported $0.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.58 by ($0.04). Las Vegas Sands had a net margin of 12.80% and a return on equity of 43.76%. Equities analysts forecast that Las Vegas Sands Corp. will post 2.63 earnings per share for the current year.

Las Vegas Sands Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, February 19th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 10th will be paid a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 10th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.38%. This is an increase from Las Vegas Sands's previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. Las Vegas Sands's dividend payout ratio is currently 40.61%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

LVS has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Mizuho upped their price target on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $52.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $49.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Morgan Stanley restated an "equal weight" rating and set a $51.00 target price (down previously from $54.00) on shares of Las Vegas Sands in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Susquehanna upped their target price on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $51.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock a "positive" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Barclays dropped their target price on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $61.00 to $58.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Las Vegas Sands currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $59.58.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Robert G. Goldstein sold 60,187 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, November 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $53.02, for a total value of $3,191,114.74. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Insiders own 0.91% of the company's stock.

About Las Vegas Sands

Las Vegas Sands Corp., together with its subsidiaries, develops, owns, and operates integrated resorts in Macao and Singapore. It owns and operates The Venetian Macao Resort Hotel, the Londoner Macao, The Parisian Macao, The Plaza Macao and Four Seasons Hotel Macao, Cotai Strip, and the Sands Macao in Macao, the People's Republic of China; and Marina Bay Sands in Singapore.