Nuveen Asset Management LLC Reduces Stock Holdings in Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE:LVS)

Nuveen Asset Management LLC cut its stake in shares of Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE:LVS - Free Report) by 47.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,825,909 shares of the casino operator's stock after selling 1,620,715 shares during the quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC owned approximately 0.25% of Las Vegas Sands worth $93,779,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its stake in Las Vegas Sands by 32.2% in the fourth quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 32,948 shares of the casino operator's stock worth $1,707,000 after purchasing an additional 8,032 shares in the last quarter. ARGA Investment Management LP grew its stake in Las Vegas Sands by 32.0% in the fourth quarter. ARGA Investment Management LP now owns 6,501,382 shares of the casino operator's stock worth $333,911,000 after purchasing an additional 1,577,042 shares in the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its stake 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 bought a new position in Las Vegas Sands in the fourth quarter worth approximately $2,311,000. Finally, World Equity Group Inc. grew its stake in Las Vegas Sands by 82.9% in the fourth quarter. World Equity Group Inc. now owns 25,602 shares of the casino operator's stock worth $1,315,000 after purchasing an additional 11,602 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 39.16% of the company's stock.

Las Vegas Sands Stock Down 3.4%

Shares of LVS traded down $1.43 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $40.88. 5,781,694 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,104,273. The firm's fifty day moving average is $37.66 and its 200-day moving average is $44.43. The stock has a market capitalization of $28.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 0.99. The company has a current ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.35. Las Vegas Sands Corp. has a 1 year low of $30.18 and a 1 year high of $56.61.

Las Vegas Sands (NYSE:LVS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 23rd. The casino operator reported $0.59 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.60 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $2.86 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.95 billion. Las Vegas Sands had a return on equity of 45.82% and a net margin of 12.80%. The company's quarterly revenue was down 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.78 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Las Vegas Sands Corp. will post 2.6 earnings per share for the current year.

Las Vegas Sands declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, April 23rd that permits the company to repurchase $2.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the casino operator to repurchase up to 8.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Las Vegas Sands Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 14th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 6th were paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, May 6th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.45%. Las Vegas Sands's payout ratio is presently 55.56%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently issued reports on LVS shares. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on Las Vegas Sands from $47.00 to $45.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Citigroup increased their target price on Las Vegas Sands from $64.50 to $67.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $57.00 price target on Las Vegas Sands and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Hsbc Global Res upgraded Las Vegas Sands to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on Las Vegas Sands from $60.00 to $59.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $56.75.

Las Vegas Sands 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.