Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. Sells 11,500 Shares of Las Vegas Sands Corp. $LVS

Key Points

• Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. decreased its stake in Las Vegas Sands Corp. by 3.5%, selling 11,500 shares, and now holds 313,600 shares valued at approximately $12 million.
• Las Vegas Sands reported a 15% increase in quarterly revenue year-over-year, with earnings per share of $0.79, surpassing estimates by $0.26.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.25 per share, yielding 1.9%, with a payout ratio of 50.51%.

Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. trimmed its position in shares of Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE:LVS - Free Report) by 3.5% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 313,600 shares of the casino operator's stock after selling 11,500 shares during the period. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C.'s holdings in Las Vegas Sands were worth $12,114,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in LVS. Center for Financial Planning Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Las Vegas Sands during the 1st quarter worth about $42,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 133.1% during the 1st quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,499 shares of the casino operator's stock worth $59,000 after buying an additional 856 shares in the last quarter. Neo Ivy Capital Management bought a new stake in shares of Las Vegas Sands during the 1st quarter worth about $127,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 103.2% during the 1st quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,587 shares of the casino operator's stock worth $139,000 after buying an additional 1,822 shares in the last quarter. Finally, AlphaQuest LLC bought a new stake in shares of Las Vegas Sands during the 1st quarter worth about $153,000. 39.16% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Las Vegas Sands Stock Down 2.2%

LVS traded down $1.18 on Friday, reaching $53.53. 5,880,928 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,275,207. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $52.79 and its 200-day moving average price is $44.51. Las Vegas Sands Corp. has a 52-week low of $30.18 and a 52-week high of $58.05. The company has a market cap of $36.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.04, a PEG ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 1.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.53, a current ratio of 1.22 and a quick ratio of 1.21.

Las Vegas Sands (NYSE:LVS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 23rd. The casino operator reported $0.79 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.53 by $0.26. Las Vegas Sands had a net margin of 12.16% and a return on equity of 55.37%. The firm had revenue of $3.18 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.83 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.55 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 15.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Las Vegas Sands Corp. will post 2.6 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Las Vegas Sands Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 13th. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 5th were given a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, August 5th. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.9%. Las Vegas Sands's payout ratio is presently 50.51%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have commented on LVS shares. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $52.50 to $58.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 24th. Argus upgraded shares of Las Vegas Sands from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $60.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Monday, July 28th. Macquarie boosted their target price on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $52.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, July 24th. Mizuho boosted their target price on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $47.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, July 24th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on shares of Las Vegas Sands in a report on Monday, July 7th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $52.00 target price on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $59.47.

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.