Hussman Strategic Advisors Inc. Invests $970,000 in Las Vegas Sands Corp. $LVS

Hussman Strategic Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE:LVS) during the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm bought 21,000 shares of the casino operator’s stock, valued at approximately $970,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its position in Las Vegas Sands by 222.7% in the fourth quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 9,098,518 shares of the casino operator’s stock worth $592,223,000 after purchasing an additional 6,279,390 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Las Vegas Sands during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $364,892,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership boosted its holdings in Las Vegas Sands by 410.2% during the third quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 5,167,553 shares of the casino operator’s stock valued at $277,963,000 after purchasing an additional 4,154,753 shares in the last quarter. M&T Bank Corp boosted its holdings in Las Vegas Sands by 33,102.6% during the fourth quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 3,060,288 shares of the casino operator’s stock valued at $197,463,000 after purchasing an additional 3,051,071 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Amundi grew its stake in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 157.2% in the 1st quarter. Amundi now owns 2,864,789 shares of the casino operator’s stock valued at $154,355,000 after purchasing an additional 1,750,758 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 39.16% of the company’s stock.

Las Vegas Sands Price Performance

Shares of Las Vegas Sands stock opened at $46.21 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $29.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.98, a P/E/G ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 0.85. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $47.17 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $51.80. The company has a current ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 15.27. Las Vegas Sands Corp. has a 1-year low of $44.21 and a 1-year high of $70.45.

Las Vegas Sands (NYSE:LVS) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The casino operator reported $0.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.76 by ($0.17). Las Vegas Sands had a net margin of 12.59% and a return on equity of 133.90%. The firm had revenue of $3.15 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.31 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.66 EPS. The business’s revenue was down .7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that Las Vegas Sands Corp. will post 3.09 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Las Vegas Sands Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 12th. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 4th were issued a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, August 4th. Las Vegas Sands’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 46.69%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on Las Vegas Sands from $61.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, April 23rd. Bank of America decreased their price target on Las Vegas Sands from $70.00 to $60.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, July 20th. HSBC upped their price target on Las Vegas Sands from $73.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 23rd. Mizuho dropped their price objective on Las Vegas Sands from $67.00 to $61.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. Finally, Zacks Research cut Las Vegas Sands from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Las Vegas Sands has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $61.88.

Las Vegas Sands 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.