Wells Fargo & Company Cuts Las Vegas Sands (NYSE:LVS) Price Target to $59.00

Las Vegas Sands (NYSE:LVS) had its price target trimmed by Wells Fargo & Company from $60.00 to $59.00 in a research note released on Thursday morning,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an overweight rating on the casino operator’s stock.

A number of other analysts also recently weighed in on LVS. Mizuho increased their price target on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $52.00 to $57.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $62.00 to $61.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. Morgan Stanley restated an “equal weight” rating and set a $51.00 price target (down from $54.00) on shares of Las Vegas Sands in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Susquehanna raised 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, Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on Las Vegas Sands from $55.00 to $64.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $59.58.

Las Vegas Sands Price Performance

NYSE LVS opened at $48.26 on Thursday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $49.94 and a 200 day simple moving average of $46.70. Las Vegas Sands has a twelve month low of $36.62 and a twelve month high of $56.60. The stock has a market capitalization of $34.99 billion, a PE ratio of 24.49, a P/E/G ratio of 1.00 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.09, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a current ratio of 0.90.

Las Vegas Sands (NYSE:LVS) last issued its quarterly earnings results 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%. Research analysts anticipate that Las Vegas Sands will post 2.76 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 issued a $0.25 dividend. This is a positive change from Las Vegas Sands’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 10th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.07%. Las Vegas Sands’s dividend payout ratio is presently 40.61%.

Insider Activity at Las Vegas Sands

In other Las Vegas Sands news, CEO Robert G. Goldstein sold 24,324 shares of Las Vegas Sands stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $52.00, for a total value of $1,264,848.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 60,187 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,129,724. The trade was a 28.78 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Robert G. Goldstein sold 60,187 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $53.02, for a total value of $3,191,114.74. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.91% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Las Vegas Sands

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of LVS. Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its stake in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 159.6% during the third quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 9,130,486 shares of the casino operator’s stock worth $459,630,000 after buying an additional 5,612,975 shares during the last quarter. ARGA Investment Management LP grew its holdings in Las Vegas Sands by 32.0% during the 4th quarter. ARGA Investment Management LP now owns 6,501,382 shares of the casino operator’s stock worth $333,911,000 after acquiring an additional 1,577,042 shares during the period. Suvretta Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Las Vegas Sands during the 3rd quarter valued at $24,370,000. Bamco Inc. NY lifted its stake in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 29.2% in the 3rd quarter. Bamco Inc. NY now owns 1,581,075 shares of the casino operator’s stock valued at $79,591,000 after purchasing an additional 357,234 shares during the period. Finally, Raymond James & Associates boosted its position in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 82.2% in the 3rd quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 499,852 shares of the casino operator’s stock worth $25,163,000 after purchasing an additional 225,510 shares during the last quarter. 39.16% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.