Swiss National Bank Sells 17,800 Shares of Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE:LVS)

Key Points

• The Swiss National Bank has reduced its holdings in Las Vegas Sands Corp. by 1.7%, owning 1,022,400 shares after selling 17,800 shares in Q1.
• Las Vegas Sands recently reported earnings of $0.79 EPS, exceeding the consensus estimate of $0.53, while revenue reached $3.18 billion, surpassing expectations.
• The company has announced a quarterly dividend of $0.25 per share, equating to an annual yield of 1.9%, alongside a $2.00 billion stock buyback plan.

Swiss National Bank reduced its stake in Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE:LVS - Free Report) by 1.7% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,022,400 shares of the casino operator's stock after selling 17,800 shares during the period. Swiss National Bank owned about 0.14% of Las Vegas Sands worth $39,495,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Optiver Holding B.V. bought a new position in shares of Las Vegas Sands during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Center for Financial Planning Inc. bought a new position in shares of Las Vegas Sands during the first quarter valued at approximately $42,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 133.1% during the first quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,499 shares of the casino operator's stock valued at $59,000 after acquiring an additional 856 shares in the last quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 104.7% during the fourth quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC now owns 1,775 shares of the casino operator's stock valued at $91,000 after acquiring an additional 908 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Neo Ivy Capital Management bought a new position in shares of Las Vegas Sands during the first quarter valued at approximately $127,000. 39.16% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently commented on LVS shares. UBS Group upped their target price on Las Vegas Sands from $48.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Wall Street Zen raised Las Vegas Sands from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, July 26th. Bank of America increased their target price on Las Vegas Sands from $52.50 to $58.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 24th. Argus raised Las Vegas Sands from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $60.00 price target on the stock in a report on Monday, July 28th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Las Vegas Sands from $47.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 24th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $58.33.

Las Vegas Sands Price Performance

NYSE LVS traded down $0.44 during trading on Friday, hitting $53.68. 3,487,695 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,070,876. The company has a market capitalization of $36.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.05 and a beta of 1.08. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $48.11 and a 200-day simple moving average of $42.95. The company has a quick ratio of 1.21, a current ratio of 1.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.53. Las Vegas Sands Corp. has a 12-month low of $30.18 and a 12-month high of $56.60.

Las Vegas Sands (NYSE:LVS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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 during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.83 billion. Las Vegas Sands had a return on equity of 55.37% and a net margin of 12.16%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 15.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.55 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Las Vegas Sands Corp. will post 2.6 EPS for the current year.

Las Vegas Sands Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 13th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 5th were paid a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, August 5th. Las Vegas Sands's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 50.51%.

Las Vegas Sands announced that its board has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, April 23rd that authorizes the company to repurchase $2.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the casino operator to purchase up to 8.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often a sign that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

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.