Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE:LVS) to Issue Quarterly Dividend of $0.25

Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE:LVS - Get Free Report) declared a quarterly dividend on Thursday, July 24th, Wall Street Journal reports. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 5th will be given a dividend of 0.25 per share by the casino operator on Wednesday, August 13th. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.91%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 5th.

Las Vegas Sands has a dividend payout ratio of 35.1% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Analysts expect Las Vegas Sands to earn $2.92 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.00 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 34.2%.

Las Vegas Sands Trading Up 0.1%

Las Vegas Sands stock traded up $0.05 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $52.46. The company had a trading volume of 7,654,454 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,159,137. The firm has a market cap of $37.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.49, a P/E/G ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 1.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.58, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a current ratio of 0.59. Las Vegas Sands has a 1 year low of $30.18 and a 1 year high of $56.60. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $44.48 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $42.04.

Las Vegas Sands (NYSE:LVS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The casino operator reported $0.79 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.53 by $0.26. Las Vegas Sands had a net margin of 12.16% and a return on equity of 51.16%. The firm had revenue of $3.18 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.83 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.55 EPS. The company's revenue was up 15.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Las Vegas Sands will post 2.6 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

An institutional investor recently raised its position in Las Vegas Sands stock. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its position in Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE:LVS - Free Report) by 8.4% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 31,251 shares of the casino operator's stock after purchasing an additional 2,418 shares during the quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd.'s holdings in Las Vegas Sands were worth $1,207,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 39.16% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently commented on LVS shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $47.00 to $56.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday. Citigroup reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Las Vegas Sands in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on shares of Las Vegas Sands in a research report on Monday, July 7th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $52.00 price target for the company. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $43.00 to $48.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Finally, Hsbc Global Res upgraded shares of Las Vegas Sands to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Las Vegas Sands presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $57.67.

Las Vegas Sands declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback plan on Wednesday, April 23rd that authorizes the company to buyback $2.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the casino operator to buy up to 8.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally a sign that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

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.