Tobam Decreases Holdings in Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE:LVS)

Tobam cut its holdings in Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE:LVS - Free Report) by 77.8% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,270 shares of the casino operator's stock after selling 7,964 shares during the period. Tobam's holdings in Las Vegas Sands were worth $88,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Fisher Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in Las Vegas Sands by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 13,810,351 shares of the casino operator's stock worth $709,300,000 after purchasing an additional 160,711 shares in the last quarter. Polymer Capital Management HK LTD acquired a new stake in shares of Las Vegas Sands during the 4th quarter worth approximately $2,311,000. World Equity Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 82.9% in the 4th quarter. World Equity Group Inc. now owns 25,602 shares of the casino operator's stock valued at $1,315,000 after acquiring an additional 11,602 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp lifted its position in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 12.4% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 3,088,597 shares of the casino operator's stock valued at $158,630,000 after acquiring an additional 339,992 shares during the period. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its stake 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 worth $45,000 after acquiring an additional 342 shares in the last quarter. 39.16% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $47.00 to $45.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Mizuho set a $47.00 price target on Las Vegas Sands in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Macquarie cut their price target on Las Vegas Sands from $58.00 to $52.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Hsbc Global Res upgraded Las Vegas Sands to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, Barclays lowered their target price on Las Vegas Sands from $58.00 to $53.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $56.75.

Las Vegas Sands Stock Down 3.9%

NYSE LVS traded down $1.62 on Friday, reaching $40.29. The company had a trading volume of 4,893,727 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,055,787. The company has a quick ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 0.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.35. The company's fifty day moving average is $38.21 and its 200 day moving average is $43.32. Las Vegas Sands Corp. has a 52-week low of $30.18 and a 52-week high of $56.61. The stock has a market capitalization of $28.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.45, a P/E/G ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.03.

Las Vegas Sands (NYSE:LVS - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results 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 12.80% and a return on equity of 45.82%. The firm had revenue of $2.86 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.95 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.78 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Las Vegas Sands Corp. will post 2.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Las Vegas Sands Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 14th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 6th were paid a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, May 6th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.48%. Las Vegas Sands's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 55.56%.

Las Vegas Sands declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase program on Wednesday, April 23rd that allows the company to repurchase $2.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the casino operator to reacquire up to 8.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are generally a sign that the company's leadership 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.