Cwm LLC Boosts Holdings in Las Vegas Sands Corp. $LVS

Key Points

• Cwm LLC boosted its stake in Las Vegas Sands by 146.1% in Q4, adding 149,834 shares to hold 252,410 shares valued at about $16.43 million.
• Las Vegas Sands beat quarterly expectations with $0.85 EPS (vs. $0.77) and $3.65B revenue (up 26% YoY) and raised its quarterly dividend to $0.30 ($1.20 annual, ~2.1% yield).
• CEO Patrick Dumont sold 60,165 shares (~$3.29M), reducing his stake by 10.52% (insiders own 0.55%), while analysts show a consensus of "Moderate Buy" with an average target of $67.84.

Cwm LLC raised its position in Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE:LVS - Free Report) by 146.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 252,410 shares of the casino operator's stock after acquiring an additional 149,834 shares during the period. Cwm LLC's holdings in Las Vegas Sands were worth $16,429,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 8.4% in the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 31,251 shares of the casino operator's stock worth $1,207,000 after purchasing an additional 2,418 shares in the last quarter. Woodline Partners LP increased its position in Las Vegas Sands by 38.9% during the 1st quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 29,032 shares of the casino operator's stock valued at $1,122,000 after buying an additional 8,132 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in Las Vegas Sands by 91.8% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,146 shares of the casino operator's stock valued at $93,000 after buying an additional 1,027 shares during the last quarter. Flow Traders U.S. LLC acquired a new stake in Las Vegas Sands in the second quarter worth about $414,000. Finally, Cerity Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Las Vegas Sands by 70.0% in the second quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 17,595 shares of the casino operator's stock worth $766,000 after acquiring an additional 7,243 shares in the last quarter. 39.16% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Las Vegas Sands Stock Up 1.7%

Las Vegas Sands stock opened at $57.66 on Friday. The business's 50-day moving average price is $55.14 and its 200 day moving average price is $58.89. The company has a quick ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 7.58. The firm has a market cap of $38.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 0.89. Las Vegas Sands Corp. has a 52 week low of $32.20 and a 52 week high of $70.45.

Las Vegas Sands (NYSE:LVS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The casino operator reported $0.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.77 by $0.08. Las Vegas Sands had a return on equity of 91.40% and a net margin of 12.50%.The company had revenue of $3.65 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.33 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.54 earnings per share. Las Vegas Sands's revenue for the quarter was up 26.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side 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 declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 18th. Investors of record on Monday, February 9th were paid a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 9th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.1%. This is a boost from Las Vegas Sands's previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. Las Vegas Sands's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 51.28%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price objective on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $76.00 to $77.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $68.00 to $65.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday. Macquarie Infrastructure restated an "outperform" rating and set a $70.00 price target on shares of Las Vegas Sands in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $70.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, January 23rd. Finally, Zacks Research lowered shares of Las Vegas Sands from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, December 22nd. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $67.84.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Las Vegas Sands news, CEO Patrick Dumont sold 60,165 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.75, for a total transaction of $3,294,033.75. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 511,942 shares in the company, valued at approximately $28,028,824.50. This represents a 10.52% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.55% of the company's stock.

Las Vegas Sands Company Profile

Las Vegas Sands NYSE: LVS is a global developer and operator of integrated resorts, focused on large-scale properties that combine casino gaming with hotels, convention and exhibition facilities, retail, dining, and entertainment. The company's operations center on developing and managing full-service resort complexes that serve both leisure and business travelers, with emphasis on convention and trade-show business in addition to gaming revenue streams.

The company's portfolio has included prominent properties in North America and Asia, most notably The Venetian Resort in Las Vegas and Marina Bay Sands in Singapore, along with a significant presence in Macau through multiple integrated resorts.

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