Dodge & Cox Trims Stock Position in Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE:LVS)

Dodge & Cox trimmed its holdings in Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE:LVS) by 16.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 23,686 shares of the casino operator’s stock after selling 4,714 shares during the period. Dodge & Cox’s holdings in Las Vegas Sands were worth $1,217,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. boosted its position in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 3.7% in the fourth quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 6,505 shares of the casino operator’s stock worth $334,000 after acquiring an additional 231 shares during the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB raised its stake 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 purchasing an additional 238 shares during the period. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its holdings in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 73.5% in the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 583 shares of the casino operator’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 247 shares during the last quarter. E Fund Management Co. Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 4.7% during the 4th quarter. E Fund Management Co. Ltd. now owns 5,595 shares of the casino operator’s stock valued at $287,000 after buying an additional 250 shares during the period. Finally, RiverFront Investment Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 2.6% during the 4th quarter. RiverFront Investment Group LLC now owns 10,257 shares of the casino operator’s stock worth $527,000 after buying an additional 257 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 39.16% of the company’s stock.

Las Vegas Sands Stock Performance

NYSE:LVS opened at $32.71 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $40.67 and a two-hundred day moving average of $46.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.35, a current ratio of 0.74 and a quick ratio of 0.73. The stock has a market cap of $23.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.60, a PEG ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 0.99. Las Vegas Sands Corp. has a 1-year low of $30.18 and a 1-year high of $56.61.

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 net margin of 12.80% and a return on equity of 45.82%. On average, research analysts expect that Las Vegas Sands Corp. will post 2.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Las Vegas Sands Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 19th. Investors of record on Monday, February 10th were paid a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.06%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 10th. This is a positive change from Las Vegas Sands’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. Las Vegas Sands’s payout ratio is 50.76%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their price target on Las Vegas Sands from $66.00 to $62.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Citigroup boosted their target price on Las Vegas Sands from $64.50 to $67.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $62.00 to $61.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $51.00 to $49.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 24th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price 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’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $59.42.

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.