PFA Pension Forsikringsaktieselskab Makes New Investment in Las Vegas Sands Corp. $LVS

Key Points

• PFA Pension opened a new stake in Las Vegas Sands, buying 165,571 shares worth about $10.78 million, and other institutions (notably Danske Bank) also materially increased positions, leaving institutional ownership at roughly 39.16%.
• Las Vegas Sands beat Q1 expectations with $0.91 EPS vs. $0.76 and revenue of $3.59 billion (up 25.3% YoY), and declared a quarterly dividend of $0.30 (annualized yield ~2.2%).
• Analysts hold a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" with a $68.28 target (11 Buys, 7 Holds), while CEO Patrick Dumont sold 60,165 shares—reducing his stake by about 10.5%—in March.

PFA Pension Forsikringsaktieselskab bought a new position in Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE:LVS - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 165,571 shares of the casino operator's stock, valued at approximately $10,779,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Horizon Investments LLC grew its stake in Las Vegas Sands by 103.2% in the 4th quarter. Horizon Investments LLC now owns 63,977 shares of the casino operator's stock worth $4,164,000 after acquiring an additional 32,494 shares in the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp grew its stake in Las Vegas Sands by 2.1% in the 4th quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 22,828 shares of the casino operator's stock worth $1,486,000 after acquiring an additional 462 shares in the last quarter. Danske Bank A S grew its stake in Las Vegas Sands by 109.5% in the 4th quarter. Danske Bank A S now owns 313,566 shares of the casino operator's stock worth $20,410,000 after acquiring an additional 163,907 shares in the last quarter. GenTrust LLC bought a new position in Las Vegas Sands in the 4th quarter worth about $392,000. Finally, Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI bought a new position in Las Vegas Sands in the 4th quarter worth about $278,000. 39.16% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on LVS. HSBC increased their price objective on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $73.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 23rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price objective on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $77.00 to $73.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 23rd. Macquarie Infrastructure reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $70.00 price objective on shares of Las Vegas Sands in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of 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. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $72.00 to $74.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 23rd. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Las Vegas Sands presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $68.28.

Insider Activity

In other Las Vegas Sands news, CEO Patrick Dumont sold 60,165 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $54.75, for a total value of $3,294,033.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 511,942 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $28,028,824.50. This trade represents a 10.52% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.55% of the company's stock.

Las Vegas Sands Price Performance

Shares of LVS opened at $53.85 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $35.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.23 and a beta of 0.85. Las Vegas Sands Corp. has a twelve month low of $37.24 and a twelve month high of $70.45. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 8.64. The company has a 50 day moving average of $54.66 and a two-hundred day moving average of $59.15.

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

Las Vegas Sands Dividend Announcement

The business 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 $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 5th. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.2%. Las Vegas Sands's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 44.44%.

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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