Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE:LVS - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 4,216,720 shares of the casino operator's stock, valued at approximately $216,571,000. Norges Bank owned about 0.58% of Las Vegas Sands at the end of the most recent reporting period.
Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 3.7% in the fourth quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 6,505 shares of the casino operator's stock valued at $334,000 after buying an additional 231 shares during the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB raised its stake in Las Vegas Sands by 45.6% during the 4th quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 760 shares of the casino operator's stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 238 shares during the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. raised its stake 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 last quarter. E Fund Management Co. Ltd. lifted its position in Las Vegas Sands by 4.7% during the 4th quarter. E Fund Management Co. Ltd. now owns 5,595 shares of the casino operator's stock worth $287,000 after acquiring an additional 250 shares during the period. Finally, Horizon Investments LLC grew its stake in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 2.8% in the 4th quarter. Horizon Investments LLC now owns 10,200 shares of the casino operator's stock valued at $521,000 after purchasing an additional 277 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 39.16% of the company's stock.
Las Vegas Sands Price Performance
LVS traded down $3.03 during trading on Friday, reaching $33.38. 11,363,884 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,942,744. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.35, a current ratio of 0.74 and a quick ratio of 0.73. The company has a market capitalization of $23.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.94, a P/E/G ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 0.99. Las Vegas Sands Corp. has a 1 year low of $32.75 and a 1 year high of $56.61. The business's 50 day moving average price is $42.88 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $47.61.
Las Vegas Sands (NYSE:LVS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The casino operator reported $0.54 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.58 by ($0.04). Las Vegas Sands had a return on equity of 45.82% and a net margin of 12.80%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Las Vegas Sands Corp. will post 2.6 earnings per share for the current year.
Las Vegas Sands Increases Dividend
The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 19th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 10th were paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.00%. This is a boost from Las Vegas Sands's previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 10th. Las Vegas Sands's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 50.76%.
Analysts Set New Price Targets
LVS has been the subject of several recent research reports. Citigroup increased their price target on Las Vegas Sands from $64.50 to $67.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Macquarie lifted their target price on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $57.00 to $58.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price target on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $66.00 to $62.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Jefferies Financial Group raised Las Vegas Sands from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $60.00 to $69.00 in a report on Friday, January 3rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their target price on Las Vegas Sands from $51.00 to $49.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 24th. 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, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $59.42.
Read Our Latest Stock Report on Las Vegas Sands
About Las Vegas Sands
(
Free Report)
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.
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