Las Vegas Sands (NYSE:LVS) Downgraded to “Strong Sell” Rating by Zacks Research

Zacks Research cut shares of Las Vegas Sands (NYSE:LVS) from a hold rating to a strong sell rating in a research report sent to investors on Thursday,Zacks.com reports.

Other research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. Citigroup lowered their target price on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $78.50 to $73.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 10th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Las Vegas Sands from $65.00 to $53.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, July 14th. Barclays decreased their price target on Las Vegas Sands from $63.00 to $59.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. Morgan Stanley set a $68.00 price objective on Las Vegas Sands in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered Las Vegas Sands from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 26th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Las Vegas Sands currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $62.31.

Las Vegas Sands Price Performance

NYSE LVS opened at $46.12 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 8.64. Las Vegas Sands has a 12 month low of $44.21 and a 12 month high of $70.45. The stock has a market cap of $30.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.95, a PEG ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 0.83. The company’s 50 day moving average is $48.24 and its two-hundred day moving average is $53.22.

Las Vegas Sands (NYSE:LVS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The casino operator reported $0.59 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.76 by ($0.17). The firm had revenue of $3.15 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.31 billion. Las Vegas Sands had a return on equity of 117.08% and a net margin of 12.59%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was down .7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.66 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Las Vegas Sands will post 3.31 earnings per share for the current year.

Las Vegas Sands Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 12th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 4th will be issued a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 4th. Las Vegas Sands’s payout ratio is 46.69%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Las Vegas Sands

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of LVS. Mackenzie Financial Corp lifted its stake in Las Vegas Sands by 0.3% in the 3rd quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 53,945 shares of the casino operator’s stock worth $2,902,000 after purchasing an additional 156 shares in the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 7.8% during the 3rd quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 2,449 shares of the casino operator’s stock valued at $132,000 after purchasing an additional 177 shares during the last quarter. &PARTNERS grew its position in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 3.2% during the fourth quarter. &PARTNERS now owns 6,930 shares of the casino operator’s stock valued at $453,000 after purchasing an additional 214 shares in the last quarter. United Capital Financial Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 5.5% during the third quarter. United Capital Financial Advisors LLC now owns 4,945 shares of the casino operator’s stock valued at $266,000 after purchasing an additional 258 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC increased its holdings in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 4.2% in the fourth quarter. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC now owns 6,859 shares of the casino operator’s stock worth $446,000 after purchasing an additional 279 shares during the last quarter. 39.16% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

More Las Vegas Sands News

Here are the key news stories impacting Las Vegas Sands this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Investors are still looking beyond near-term weakness because Las Vegas Sands is investing heavily in premium travel demand, including Macau property upgrades and an $8 billion Singapore expansion that could support future growth. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Despite the selloff after earnings, some market coverage says LVS is gaining as investors focus on the company’s long-term assets and ignore temporary headwinds. Article Title

Las Vegas Sands Company Profile

Las Vegas Sands (NYSE: LVS) is a global developer and operator of integrated resorts, focused on large-scale properties that combine casino gaming with hotels, convention and exhibition facilities, retail, dining, and entertainment. The company’s operations center on developing and managing full-service resort complexes that serve both leisure and business travelers, with emphasis on convention and trade-show business in addition to gaming revenue streams.

The company’s portfolio has included prominent properties in North America and Asia, most notably The Venetian Resort in Las Vegas and Marina Bay Sands in Singapore, along with a significant presence in Macau through multiple integrated resorts.