Las Vegas Sands (NYSE:LVS) Price Target Cut to $59.00 by Analysts at Wells Fargo & Company

Las Vegas Sands (NYSE:LVS) had its target price reduced by Wells Fargo & Company from $60.00 to $59.00 in a research report sent to investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. They currently have an overweight rating on the casino operator’s stock.

A number of other brokerages have also issued reports on LVS. Macquarie increased their price target on Las Vegas Sands from $57.00 to $58.00 in a research note on Wednesday. Barclays decreased their target price on Las Vegas Sands from $61.00 to $58.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price target on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $66.00 to $62.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $55.00 to $64.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, Susquehanna boosted their target price on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $51.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Las Vegas Sands has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $59.58.

Las Vegas Sands Price Performance

Shares of LVS opened at $48.26 on Thursday. Las Vegas Sands has a one year low of $36.62 and a one year high of $56.60. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $49.94 and its 200-day moving average is $46.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.09, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a current ratio of 0.90. The firm has a market capitalization of $34.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.00 and a beta of 1.09.

Las Vegas Sands (NYSE:LVS) last released its 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 43.76%. Equities analysts anticipate that Las Vegas Sands will post 2.76 EPS for the current year.

Las Vegas Sands Increases Dividend

The firm 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 $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.07%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 10th. This is a boost from Las Vegas Sands’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. Las Vegas Sands’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 40.61%.

Insider Activity at Las Vegas Sands

In related 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 transaction of $1,264,848.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 60,187 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,129,724. This trade represents a 28.78 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Robert G. Goldstein sold 60,187 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 29th. The shares were 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 owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Las Vegas Sands

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in LVS. Empowered Funds LLC increased its stake in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 3.6% during the 3rd quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 6,050 shares of the casino operator’s stock worth $305,000 after purchasing an additional 213 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. boosted its holdings in Las Vegas Sands by 4.7% in the third quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. now owns 5,062 shares of the casino operator’s stock worth $255,000 after purchasing an additional 229 shares in the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB increased its position in Las Vegas Sands by 45.6% during the fourth quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 760 shares of the casino operator’s stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 238 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in Las Vegas Sands by 40.1% during the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 849 shares of the casino operator’s stock valued at $43,000 after buying an additional 243 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. raised its holdings in Las Vegas Sands by 73.5% during the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 583 shares of the casino operator’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 247 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 39.16% of the company’s stock.

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.