Xponance Inc. Grows Stock Position in Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE:LVS)

Xponance Inc. grew its stake in Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE:LVS) by 1.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 79,648 shares of the casino operator’s stock after buying an additional 1,215 shares during the quarter. Xponance Inc.’s holdings in Las Vegas Sands were worth $3,919,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Waterfront Wealth Inc. lifted its holdings in Las Vegas Sands by 3.5% in the fourth quarter. Waterfront Wealth Inc. now owns 21,657 shares of the casino operator’s stock valued at $1,066,000 after acquiring an additional 728 shares during the period. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Las Vegas Sands by 27.0% during the fourth quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 35,985 shares of the casino operator’s stock worth $1,771,000 after buying an additional 7,658 shares in the last quarter. AM Squared Ltd purchased a new stake in Las Vegas Sands during the fourth quarter worth $3,076,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in Las Vegas Sands during the fourth quarter valued at $65,000. Finally, Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank increased its holdings in Las Vegas Sands by 18.2% in the fourth quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 227,478 shares of the casino operator’s stock valued at $11,194,000 after buying an additional 34,952 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 39.16% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently commented on LVS. StockNews.com upgraded Las Vegas Sands from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price objective on Las Vegas Sands from $54.00 to $53.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Las Vegas Sands from $62.00 to $60.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday. Mizuho decreased their target price on Las Vegas Sands from $70.00 to $65.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $59.00 to $55.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $63.46.

Insider Transactions at Las Vegas Sands

In related news, CEO Robert G. Goldstein sold 100,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 172,801 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,996,020.06. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 0.91% of the company’s stock.

Las Vegas Sands Stock Down 0.9 %

Shares of NYSE LVS opened at $45.46 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $34.15 billion, a PE ratio of 21.96, a P/E/G ratio of 0.74 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a current ratio of 1.31, a quick ratio of 1.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.96. Las Vegas Sands Corp. has a 12-month low of $43.77 and a 12-month high of $65.58. The company has a 50-day moving average of $52.06 and a 200 day moving average of $49.63.

Las Vegas Sands (NYSE:LVS) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 17th. The casino operator reported $0.75 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.62 by $0.13. Las Vegas Sands had a return on equity of 41.81% and a net margin of 13.99%. The business had revenue of $2.86 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.94 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.28 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 34.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Las Vegas Sands Corp. will post 2.65 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Las Vegas Sands Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 7th will be paid a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.76%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 6th. Las Vegas Sands’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 38.65%.

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.