924 Shares in Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE:LVS) Bought by Kestra Investment Management LLC

Kestra Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE:LVS) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 924 shares of the casino operator’s stock, valued at approximately $47,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its stake in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 159.6% in the 3rd quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 9,130,486 shares of the casino operator’s stock valued at $459,630,000 after purchasing an additional 5,612,975 shares in the last quarter. ARGA Investment Management LP raised its stake in shares of 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 valued at $333,911,000 after purchasing an additional 1,577,042 shares in the last quarter. Suvretta Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Las Vegas Sands in the 3rd quarter valued at about $24,370,000. Bamco Inc. NY raised 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James & Associates raised its stake 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 valued at $25,163,000 after purchasing an additional 225,510 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 39.16% of the company’s stock.

Las Vegas Sands Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:LVS opened at $44.00 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $46.76 and its two-hundred day moving average is $47.06. Las Vegas Sands Corp. has a 52 week low of $36.62 and a 52 week high of $56.60. The firm has a market capitalization of $31.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.34, a PEG ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a current ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.35.

Las Vegas Sands (NYSE:LVS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The casino operator reported $0.54 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.58 by ($0.04). Las Vegas Sands had a net margin of 12.80% and a return on equity of 45.82%. Analysts anticipate that Las Vegas Sands Corp. will post 2.6 earnings per share for the current year.

Las Vegas Sands Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 19th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 10th were paid a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 10th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.27%. This is a positive change from Las Vegas Sands’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. Las Vegas Sands’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 50.76%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on LVS shares. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Las Vegas Sands from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the company from $60.00 to $69.00 in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $62.00 to $61.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “equal weight” rating and set a $51.00 price objective (down previously from $54.00) on shares of Las Vegas Sands in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $61.00 to $58.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of 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. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Las Vegas Sands presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $59.58.

Insider Buying and Selling at Las Vegas Sands

In other news, CEO Robert G. Goldstein sold 60,187 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $53.02, for a total value of $3,191,114.74. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.91% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.