Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp Sells 43,182 Shares of Las Vegas Sands Corp. $LVS

Key Points

• Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp cut its stake in Las Vegas Sands by 17.4%, selling 43,182 shares and leaving it with 204,318 shares valued at about $13.3 million.
• CEO Patrick Dumont sold 60,165 shares on March 17 for roughly $3.29 million, a 10.52% reduction in his holding; corporate insiders now own about 0.55% of the stock.
• Las Vegas Sands beat quarterly expectations with EPS $0.91 vs. $0.76 and revenue $3.59B vs. $3.32B, and declared a $0.30 quarterly dividend (ex-dividend May 5, yield ~2.2%).

Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp decreased its position in Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE:LVS - Free Report) by 17.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 204,318 shares of the casino operator's stock after selling 43,182 shares during the quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp's holdings in Las Vegas Sands were worth $13,299,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Mackenzie Financial Corp lifted its holdings in Las Vegas Sands by 0.3% in the third quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 53,945 shares of the casino operator's stock valued at $2,902,000 after acquiring an additional 156 shares during the period. Westside Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 48.0% in the third quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 512 shares of the casino operator's stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 166 shares during the period. Parallel Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 7.8% in the third quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 2,449 shares of the casino operator's stock worth $132,000 after buying an additional 177 shares during the period. Alps Advisors Inc. raised its stake in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 2.4% in the third quarter. Alps Advisors Inc. now owns 8,528 shares of the casino operator's stock worth $459,000 after buying an additional 197 shares during the period. Finally, United Capital Financial Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 5.5% in the third quarter. United Capital Financial Advisors LLC now owns 4,945 shares of the casino operator's stock worth $266,000 after buying an additional 258 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 39.16% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently commented on LVS. Mizuho raised their price objective on Las Vegas Sands from $65.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on Las Vegas Sands from $68.00 to $65.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 16th. HSBC raised their price objective on Las Vegas Sands from $73.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 23rd. Seaport Research Partners decreased their price objective on Las Vegas Sands from $72.00 to $69.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price objective on Las Vegas Sands from $80.00 to $73.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $68.28.

Las Vegas Sands Stock Performance

NYSE:LVS opened at $53.85 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 8.64. Las Vegas Sands Corp. has a 12-month low of $37.24 and a 12-month high of $70.45. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $54.66 and a 200 day moving average price of $58.99. The stock has a market capitalization of $35.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.94, a P/E/G ratio of 1.25 and a beta of 0.85.

Las Vegas Sands (NYSE:LVS - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The casino operator reported $0.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.76 by $0.15. Las Vegas Sands had a return on equity of 118.27% and a net margin of 13.41%.The firm had revenue of $3.59 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.32 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.59 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 25.3% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that Las Vegas Sands Corp. will post 3.35 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Las Vegas Sands Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 13th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 5th will be issued a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 5th. Las Vegas Sands's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 44.44%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Las Vegas Sands news, CEO Patrick Dumont sold 60,165 shares of the firm's 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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 511,942 shares in the company, valued at $28,028,824.50. This trade represents a 10.52% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.55% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About Las Vegas Sands

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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