Westpac Banking Corp Acquires 18,811 Shares of Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE:LVS)

Westpac Banking Corp increased its stake in shares of Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE:LVS - Free Report) by 221.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 27,287 shares of the casino operator's stock after purchasing an additional 18,811 shares during the quarter. Westpac Banking Corp's holdings in Las Vegas Sands were worth $1,343,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new stake in Las Vegas Sands in the third quarter valued at approximately $27,000. CNB Bank acquired a new stake in Las Vegas Sands in the third quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Delos Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Las Vegas Sands in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in Las Vegas Sands by 150.4% in the fourth quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 681 shares of the casino operator's stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 409 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in Las Vegas Sands in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $39,000. 39.16% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Las Vegas Sands

In other Las Vegas Sands news, CEO Robert G. Goldstein sold 100,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, March 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $52.06, for a total value of $5,206,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 172,801 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,996,020.06. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Insiders own 1.20% of the company's stock.

Las Vegas Sands Stock Performance

LVS stock traded down $0.21 on Wednesday, reaching $46.11. 5,652,092 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,804,916. Las Vegas Sands Corp. has a 12 month low of $43.77 and a 12 month high of $61.25. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $49.53 and its 200 day moving average price is $49.69. The firm has a market capitalization of $34.35 billion, a PE ratio of 22.28, a PEG ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 1.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.96, a current ratio of 1.30 and a quick ratio of 1.29.

Las Vegas Sands (NYSE:LVS - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 17th. The casino operator reported $0.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.62 by $0.13. The business had revenue of $2.86 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.94 billion. Las Vegas Sands had a net margin of 13.99% and a return on equity of 42.34%. Las Vegas Sands's revenue was up 34.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.28 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that Las Vegas Sands Corp. will post 2.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Las Vegas Sands Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 7th will be issued a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.73%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 6th. Las Vegas Sands's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 38.65%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have issued reports on LVS. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $61.00 to $62.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 9th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $62.00 to $60.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 18th. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price target on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $54.00 to $53.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 18th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price target on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $66.00 to $62.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 18th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price target on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $70.00 to $65.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 18th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $63.46.

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.