Orvieto Partners L.P. Invests $2.31 Million in Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE:LVS)

Orvieto Partners L.P. bought a new stake in shares of Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE:LVS - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 45,000 shares of the casino operator's stock, valued at approximately $2,311,000. Las Vegas Sands comprises about 1.9% of Orvieto Partners L.P.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 21st biggest holding.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Capital Research Global Investors increased its holdings in Las Vegas Sands by 26.5% in the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 58,824,289 shares of the casino operator's stock worth $3,021,205,000 after acquiring an additional 12,304,533 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in Las Vegas Sands in the 4th quarter worth about $216,571,000. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC boosted its stake in Las Vegas Sands by 29.8% in the 4th quarter. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC now owns 9,382,267 shares of the casino operator's stock worth $481,873,000 after purchasing an additional 2,152,829 shares during the period. ARGA Investment Management LP boosted its stake in Las Vegas Sands by 32.0% in the 4th 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 during the period. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its stake in Las Vegas Sands by 13.5% in the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 11,662,548 shares of the casino operator's stock worth $598,988,000 after purchasing an additional 1,389,963 shares during the period. 39.16% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Las Vegas Sands Trading Up 1.0 %

Shares of LVS stock traded up $0.35 on Tuesday, hitting $36.39. 1,897,733 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,132,538. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.35, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a current ratio of 0.74. Las Vegas Sands Corp. has a one year low of $30.18 and a one year high of $56.60. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $39.11 and its 200 day simple moving average is $45.70. The stock has a market capitalization of $25.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.47, a P/E/G ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 0.99.

Las Vegas Sands (NYSE:LVS - Get Free Report) last released 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 business had revenue of $2.86 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.95 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.78 EPS. Las Vegas Sands's revenue for the quarter was down 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that Las Vegas Sands Corp. will post 2.6 EPS for the current year.

Las Vegas Sands announced that its board has approved a stock buyback program on Wednesday, April 23rd that authorizes the company to repurchase $2.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the casino operator to purchase up to 8.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally an indication that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Las Vegas Sands Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 14th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 6th will be issued a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.75%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 6th. Las Vegas Sands's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 55.56%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have commented on the company. Mizuho set a $47.00 target price on Las Vegas Sands in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $57.00 target price on Las Vegas Sands and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Las Vegas Sands from $62.00 to $61.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Citigroup lifted their price target 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. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Las Vegas Sands from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $60.00 to $69.00 in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Four 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, Las Vegas Sands presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $56.75.

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.