Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE:LVS) Shares Acquired by Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc.

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE:LVS - Free Report) by 3.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 745,994 shares of the casino operator's stock after purchasing an additional 22,933 shares during the quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. owned about 0.10% of Las Vegas Sands worth $38,314,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in LVS. Janus Henderson Group PLC boosted its holdings in Las Vegas Sands by 159.6% in the third quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 9,130,486 shares of the casino operator's stock worth $459,630,000 after acquiring an additional 5,612,975 shares in the last quarter. ARGA Investment Management LP raised its stake in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 32.0% in the fourth quarter. ARGA Investment Management LP now owns 6,501,382 shares of the casino operator's stock worth $333,911,000 after purchasing an additional 1,577,042 shares during the last quarter. Suvretta Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Las Vegas Sands in the third quarter worth about $24,370,000. Bamco Inc. NY raised its stake in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 29.2% in the third quarter. Bamco Inc. NY now owns 1,581,075 shares of the casino operator's stock worth $79,591,000 after purchasing an additional 357,234 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James & Associates raised its stake in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 82.2% in the third quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 499,852 shares of the casino operator's stock worth $25,163,000 after purchasing an additional 225,510 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 39.16% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Las Vegas Sands news, CEO Robert G. Goldstein sold 60,187 shares of Las Vegas Sands stock in a transaction on Friday, November 29th. The stock was 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 is available at this link. 0.91% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Las Vegas Sands Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:LVS traded up $1.17 during trading on Friday, reaching $43.38. The stock had a trading volume of 5,917,231 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,135,474. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.09, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a current ratio of 0.90. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $48.01 and a 200-day moving average price of $46.85. The stock has a market cap of $31.45 billion, a PE ratio of 22.02, a PEG ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 1.08. Las Vegas Sands Corp. has a 1-year low of $36.62 and a 1-year high of $56.60.

Las Vegas Sands (NYSE:LVS - Get Free Report) last issued 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 return on equity of 43.76% and a net margin of 12.80%. On average, equities analysts forecast that Las Vegas Sands Corp. will post 2.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Las Vegas Sands Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, February 19th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 10th. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.31%. This is a positive change from Las Vegas Sands's previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. Las Vegas Sands's payout ratio is 40.61%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Las Vegas Sands from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $60.00 to $69.00 in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. UBS Group lifted their price target on Las Vegas Sands from $49.00 to $50.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Mizuho lifted their price target on Las Vegas Sands from $52.00 to $57.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Citigroup lifted their price target on 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, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their price target on Las Vegas Sands from $66.00 to $62.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Las Vegas Sands has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $59.58.

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.