Ninety One UK Ltd Has $2.73 Million Stock Position in Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE:LVS)

Ninety One UK Ltd lowered its position in shares of Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE:LVS) by 10.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 53,201 shares of the casino operator’s stock after selling 6,484 shares during the quarter. Ninety One UK Ltd’s holdings in Las Vegas Sands were worth $2,732,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new position in Las Vegas Sands during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. CVA Family Office LLC raised its stake in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 118.8% during the 3rd quarter. CVA Family Office LLC now owns 560 shares of the casino operator’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 304 shares in the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. raised its stake in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 73.5% during the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 583 shares of the casino operator’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 247 shares in the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new stake in shares of Las Vegas Sands during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $34,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in Las Vegas Sands by 40.1% in the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 849 shares of the casino operator’s stock valued at $43,000 after acquiring an additional 243 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 39.16% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Las Vegas Sands

In related news, CEO Robert G. Goldstein sold 60,187 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $53.02, for a total transaction of $3,191,114.74. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 1.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently weighed in on LVS. Morgan Stanley restated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $51.00 price target (down previously from $54.00) on shares of Las Vegas Sands in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target 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. Mizuho increased their price target on Las Vegas Sands from $52.00 to $57.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Susquehanna increased their price objective on Las Vegas Sands from $51.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on Las Vegas Sands from $62.00 to $61.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $59.58.

Las Vegas Sands Price Performance

Las Vegas Sands stock opened at $43.51 on Thursday. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $49.56 and its 200 day moving average is $46.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.09, a current ratio of 0.90 and a quick ratio of 0.89. The firm has a market cap of $31.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.09, a P/E/G ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 1.08. Las Vegas Sands Corp. has a one year low of $36.62 and a one year high of $56.60.

Las Vegas Sands (NYSE:LVS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The casino operator reported $0.54 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.58 by ($0.04). Las Vegas Sands had a return on equity of 43.76% and a net margin of 12.80%. As a group, research analysts expect that Las Vegas Sands Corp. will post 2.69 EPS for the current year.

Las Vegas Sands Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, February 19th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 10th will be given a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.30%. This is a positive change from Las Vegas Sands’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 10th. Las Vegas Sands’s dividend payout ratio is presently 40.61%.

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.