Las Vegas Sands (NYSE:LVS) Trading Down 5.2% Following Analyst Downgrade

Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE:LVS - Get Free Report) fell 5.2% during mid-day trading on Friday after Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on the stock from $60.00 to $59.00. Wells Fargo & Company currently has an overweight rating on the stock. Las Vegas Sands traded as low as $45.96 and last traded at $45.73. 901,004 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 83% from the average session volume of 5,150,910 shares. The stock had previously closed at $48.24.

Several other analysts have also issued reports on LVS. Susquehanna increased their target price on Las Vegas Sands from $51.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock a "positive" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $61.00 to $58.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $55.00 to $64.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $62.00 to $61.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, Macquarie boosted their price objective on Las Vegas Sands from $57.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Las Vegas Sands currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $59.58.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Las Vegas Sands news, CEO Robert G. Goldstein sold 60,187 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 29th. The stock was 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 Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Robert G. Goldstein sold 24,324 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $52.00, for a total transaction of $1,264,848.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 60,187 shares in the company, valued at $3,129,724. This trade represents a 28.78 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Las Vegas Sands

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new position in Las Vegas Sands in the 3rd quarter worth $26,000. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust purchased a new position in shares of Las Vegas Sands in the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. CVA Family Office LLC lifted its stake in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 118.8% in the 3rd quarter. CVA Family Office LLC now owns 560 shares of the casino operator's stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 304 shares during the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its holdings in Las Vegas Sands by 73.5% during the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 583 shares of the casino operator's stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 247 shares during the period. Finally, Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new position in Las Vegas Sands during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $34,000. 39.16% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Las Vegas Sands Stock Down 0.7 %

The firm has a market capitalization of $32.36 billion, a PE ratio of 22.65, a PEG ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.09. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $49.69 and a 200 day simple moving average of $46.82.

Las Vegas Sands (NYSE:LVS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The casino operator reported $0.54 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.58 by ($0.04). Las Vegas Sands had a net margin of 12.80% and a return on equity of 43.76%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Las Vegas Sands Corp. will post 2.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Las Vegas Sands Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, February 19th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 10th will be given a $0.25 dividend. This is a positive change from Las Vegas Sands's previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.24%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 10th. Las Vegas Sands's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 40.61%.

Las Vegas Sands Company Profile

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.