Bank of Nova Scotia Sells 10,612 Shares of Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE:LVS)

Bank of Nova Scotia lowered its stake in Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE:LVS - Free Report) by 22.5% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 36,541 shares of the casino operator's stock after selling 10,612 shares during the quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia's holdings in Las Vegas Sands were worth $1,412,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Malaga Cove Capital LLC lifted its holdings in Las Vegas Sands by 106.1% during the first quarter. Malaga Cove Capital LLC now owns 19,387 shares of the casino operator's stock valued at $749,000 after purchasing an additional 9,979 shares in the last quarter. OVERSEA CHINESE BANKING Corp Ltd lifted its stake in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 142.1% during the 1st quarter. OVERSEA CHINESE BANKING Corp Ltd now owns 16,054 shares of the casino operator's stock valued at $647,000 after buying an additional 54,155 shares in the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Las Vegas Sands by 13.6% in the 1st quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 32,846 shares of the casino operator's stock worth $1,269,000 after buying an additional 3,938 shares during the period. Wealthquest Corp bought a new position in shares of Las Vegas Sands in the first quarter worth about $565,000. Finally, Arkadios Wealth Advisors purchased a new stake in shares of Las Vegas Sands during the first quarter worth about $529,000. 39.16% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

LVS has been the subject of a number of research reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded Las Vegas Sands from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, July 26th. Hsbc Global Res upgraded shares of Las Vegas Sands to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $48.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Las Vegas Sands from $47.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 24th. Finally, Susquehanna decreased their price objective on Las Vegas Sands from $59.00 to $58.00 and set a "positive" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, July 21st. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Las Vegas Sands currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $58.33.

Las Vegas Sands Trading Up 0.5%

Shares of NYSE LVS opened at $52.96 on Friday. Las Vegas Sands Corp. has a twelve month low of $30.18 and a twelve month high of $56.60. The firm has a market cap of $36.36 billion, a PE ratio of 26.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.05 and a beta of 1.08. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $46.60 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $42.54. The company has a quick ratio of 1.21, a current ratio of 1.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.53.

Las Vegas Sands (NYSE:LVS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 23rd. The casino operator reported $0.79 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.53 by $0.26. The company had revenue of $3.18 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.83 billion. Las Vegas Sands had a net margin of 12.16% and a return on equity of 55.37%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 15.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.55 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Las Vegas Sands Corp. will post 2.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Las Vegas Sands Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 13th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 5th will be paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, August 5th. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.9%. Las Vegas Sands's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 50.51%.

Las Vegas Sands declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase program on Wednesday, April 23rd that allows the company to repurchase $2.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the casino operator to reacquire up to 8.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Las Vegas Sands 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.

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