New York State Teachers Retirement System Has $14.49 Million Stock Position in Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE:LVS)

New York State Teachers Retirement System decreased its position in Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE:LVS - Free Report) by 5.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 282,111 shares of the casino operator's stock after selling 16,407 shares during the period. New York State Teachers Retirement System's holdings in Las Vegas Sands were worth $14,489,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Meeder Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 97.2% in the 3rd quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 89,743 shares of the casino operator's stock valued at $4,518,000 after purchasing an additional 44,223 shares during the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in Las Vegas Sands by 32.2% in the fourth quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 32,948 shares of the casino operator's stock valued at $1,707,000 after acquiring an additional 8,032 shares during the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its holdings in Las Vegas Sands by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 5,627,422 shares of the casino operator's stock worth $283,284,000 after acquiring an additional 77,807 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in Las Vegas Sands by 33.3% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 548,072 shares of the casino operator's stock worth $27,590,000 after acquiring an additional 136,859 shares during the period. Finally, ARGA Investment Management LP raised its position in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 32.0% during the 4th quarter. ARGA Investment Management LP now owns 6,501,382 shares of the casino operator's stock valued at $333,911,000 after acquiring an additional 1,577,042 shares during the last quarter. 39.16% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Las Vegas Sands Stock Down 2.1 %

Shares of LVS stock traded down $0.97 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $44.00. 4,160,667 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,936,545. Las Vegas Sands Corp. has a 52 week low of $36.62 and a 52 week high of $56.60. The company has a current ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.35. The business has a 50 day moving average of $46.76 and a two-hundred day moving average of $47.06. The company has a market capitalization of $31.50 billion, a PE ratio of 22.34, a PEG ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 1.08.

Las Vegas Sands (NYSE:LVS - Get Free Report) last released its 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 return on equity of 45.82% and a net margin of 12.80%. Analysts anticipate that Las Vegas Sands Corp. will post 2.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Las Vegas Sands Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 19th. Investors of record on Monday, February 10th were given a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.27%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 10th. This is a positive change from Las Vegas Sands's previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. Las Vegas Sands's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 50.76%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Las Vegas Sands

In other news, CEO Robert G. Goldstein sold 60,187 shares of Las Vegas Sands stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.91% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

LVS has been the topic of several recent research reports. Mizuho raised their price target on Las Vegas Sands from $52.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on Las Vegas Sands from $62.00 to $61.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Las Vegas Sands from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $60.00 to $69.00 in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $64.50 to $67.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $49.00 to $50.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $59.58.

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.