Investors Buy Large Volume of Las Vegas Sands Call Options (NYSE:LVS)

Key Points

• Investors bought 34,916 call options on Las Vegas Sands — about a 181% increase versus typical volume — signaling notable bullish options activity even as the stock traded down to $51.81.
• Las Vegas Sands beat estimates with quarterly EPS of $0.91 versus $0.76 and revenue of $3.59B (up 25.3% YoY), and announced a quarterly dividend of $0.30 (2.3% yield).
• CEO Patrick Dumont sold 60,165 shares (~$3.29M), trimming his stake by ~10.5%, while institutions like AQR and Arrowstreet significantly increased holdings; analysts' consensus is a Moderate Buy with a $68.28 target.

Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE:LVS - Get Free Report) saw unusually large options trading activity on Monday. Investors bought 34,916 call options on the stock. This is an increase of approximately 181% compared to the typical volume of 12,429 call options.

Las Vegas Sands Price Performance

LVS stock traded down $1.98 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $51.81. 1,646,073 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,042,144. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 8.64, a current ratio of 0.92 and a quick ratio of 0.91. The company has a market capitalization of $34.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.23, a P/E/G ratio of 1.23 and a beta of 0.85. Las Vegas Sands has a 52-week low of $37.54 and a 52-week high of $70.45. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $54.66 and a 200-day moving average price of $59.15.

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

Las Vegas Sands Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 13th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 5th will be given a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 5th. Las Vegas Sands's dividend payout ratio is 44.44%.

Insider Activity at Las Vegas Sands

In other news, CEO Patrick Dumont sold 60,165 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $54.75, for a total transaction of $3,294,033.75. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 511,942 shares of the company's stock, valued at $28,028,824.50. This trade represents a 10.52% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.55% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 222.7% in the fourth quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 9,098,518 shares of the casino operator's stock worth $592,223,000 after purchasing an additional 6,279,390 shares during the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership increased its position in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 58.4% in the fourth quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 8,186,257 shares of the casino operator's stock worth $532,843,000 after purchasing an additional 3,018,704 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its position in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 18.7% in the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 7,893,031 shares of the casino operator's stock worth $513,757,000 after purchasing an additional 1,246,206 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Las Vegas Sands in the fourth quarter worth approximately $364,892,000. Finally, Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC increased its position in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 43.8% in the third quarter. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC now owns 5,454,013 shares of the casino operator's stock worth $293,371,000 after purchasing an additional 1,660,823 shares during the last quarter. 39.16% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently issued reports on LVS. HSBC lifted their price target on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $73.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 23rd. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $64.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, April 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $71.00 to $68.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 23rd. Macquarie Infrastructure reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $70.00 price objective on shares of Las Vegas Sands in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $76.75 to $78.50 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, April 13th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $68.28.

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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