Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund Acquires Shares of 10,130 Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE:LVS)

Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund acquired a new stake in shares of Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE:LVS - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 10,130 shares of the casino operator's stock, valued at approximately $391,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Optiver Holding B.V. purchased a new position in Las Vegas Sands during the fourth quarter valued at $32,000. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. purchased a new position in Las Vegas Sands during the fourth quarter valued at $36,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in Las Vegas Sands by 63.0% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 885 shares of the casino operator's stock valued at $45,000 after purchasing an additional 342 shares in the last quarter. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Las Vegas Sands in the fourth quarter valued at about $50,000. Finally, Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Las Vegas Sands in the fourth quarter valued at about $56,000. 39.16% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Las Vegas Sands Price Performance

Shares of LVS opened at $42.91 on Thursday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $39.78 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $42.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.58, a current ratio of 0.59 and a quick ratio of 0.59. Las Vegas Sands Corp. has a 1-year low of $30.18 and a 1-year high of $56.61. The stock has a market cap of $30.32 billion, a PE ratio of 23.84, a P/E/G ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.03.

Las Vegas Sands (NYSE:LVS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 23rd. The casino operator reported $0.59 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.60 by ($0.01). Las Vegas Sands had a net margin of 11.64% and a return on equity of 44.91%. The business had revenue of $2.86 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.95 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.78 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 3.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts forecast that Las Vegas Sands Corp. will post 2.6 EPS for the current year.

Las Vegas Sands declared that its board has approved a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, April 23rd that allows the company to repurchase $2.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the casino operator to buy up to 8.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

Las Vegas Sands Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 14th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 6th were paid a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.33%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, May 6th. Las Vegas Sands's payout ratio is 55.56%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

LVS has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Barclays reduced their target price on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $58.00 to $53.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Mizuho set a $47.00 price objective on shares of Las Vegas Sands in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $57.00 price objective on shares of Las Vegas Sands and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $47.00 to $45.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, Hsbc Global Res upgraded shares of Las Vegas Sands to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $55.58.

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.

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