73,804 Shares in Las Vegas Sands Corp. $LVS Bought by Sciencast Management LP

Key Points

• Sciencast Management LP has made a new investment of approximately $2.85 million in Las Vegas Sands Corp., acquiring 73,804 shares of the casino operator's stock.
• Wall Street analysts are generally optimistic, with multiple firms raising their target prices for Las Vegas Sands, and a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" with a target price of $59.00.
• The company recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.25 per share, which represents an annual yield of 1.9% and a dividend payout ratio of 50.51%.

Sciencast Management LP acquired a new stake in Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE:LVS - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 73,804 shares of the casino operator's stock, valued at approximately $2,851,000.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Achmea Investment Management B.V. boosted its stake in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 55.4% in the 1st quarter. Achmea Investment Management B.V. now owns 31,411 shares of the casino operator's stock valued at $1,213,000 after purchasing an additional 11,197 shares in the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. lifted its stake in Las Vegas Sands by 18.4% in the 1st quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 39,005 shares of the casino operator's stock valued at $1,489,000 after purchasing an additional 6,057 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its position in Las Vegas Sands by 69.3% in the first quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 567,101 shares of the casino operator's stock valued at $21,907,000 after buying an additional 232,091 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp grew its stake in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 0.4% during the first quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 3,101,190 shares of the casino operator's stock worth $119,799,000 after buying an additional 12,593 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Everett Harris & Co. CA acquired a new position in shares of Las Vegas Sands during the first quarter worth $657,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 39.16% of the company's stock.

Las Vegas Sands Trading Up 0.4%

Shares of NYSE:LVS traded up $0.20 during trading on Thursday, reaching $54.70. The stock had a trading volume of 5,815,745 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,572,516. Las Vegas Sands Corp. has a 52 week low of $30.18 and a 52 week high of $58.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.53, a quick ratio of 1.21 and a current ratio of 1.22. The firm's fifty day moving average is $52.55 and its 200 day moving average is $44.38. The stock has a market cap of $37.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.63, a P/E/G ratio of 1.97 and a beta of 1.04.

Las Vegas Sands (NYSE:LVS - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The casino operator reported $0.79 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.53 by $0.26. The business had revenue of $3.18 billion for 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%. Las Vegas Sands's revenue for the quarter was up 15.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.55 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Las Vegas Sands Corp. will post 2.6 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Las Vegas Sands Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 13th. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 5th were paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, August 5th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.8%. Las Vegas Sands's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 50.51%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently commented on LVS. Susquehanna dropped their price target on Las Vegas Sands from $59.00 to $58.00 and set a "positive" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, July 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Las Vegas Sands from $47.00 to $56.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 24th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Las Vegas Sands from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Sunday. UBS Group upped their price objective on Las Vegas Sands from $55.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 28th. Finally, Citigroup reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Las Vegas Sands in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Las Vegas Sands currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $59.47.

Las Vegas Sands Company 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.