Madison Asset Management LLC Invests $8.57 Million in Las Vegas Sands Corp. $LVS

Madison Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE:LVS) during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 185,500 shares of the casino operator’s stock, valued at approximately $8,568,000.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd lifted its holdings in Las Vegas Sands by 116.2% in the fourth quarter. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd now owns 148,196 shares of the casino operator’s stock valued at $9,646,000 after buying an additional 79,641 shares during the period. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. raised its position in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 411.5% in the 4th quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. now owns 44,208 shares of the casino operator’s stock worth $2,877,000 after acquiring an additional 35,566 shares in the last quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC raised its position in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 40.6% in the 4th quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC now owns 67,446 shares of the casino operator’s stock worth $4,390,000 after acquiring an additional 19,488 shares in the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its stake in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 74.2% in the 1st quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 1,529,236 shares of the casino operator’s stock valued at $82,395,000 after purchasing an additional 651,214 shares during the period. Finally, Fieldview Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Las Vegas Sands during the 4th quarter valued at about $4,561,000. 39.16% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

LVS has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. HC Wainwright lowered Las Vegas Sands to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Citigroup cut their price objective on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $78.50 to $73.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 10th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Las Vegas Sands from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, July 12th. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their target price on Las Vegas Sands from $63.00 to $55.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Las Vegas Sands from $64.00 to $60.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $61.88.

Las Vegas Sands Stock Performance

Shares of LVS stock opened at $46.59 on Thursday. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $46.86 and a 200-day moving average of $51.48. The company has a market cap of $30.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.13, a P/E/G ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 15.27, a current ratio of 1.00 and a quick ratio of 0.99. Las Vegas Sands Corp. has a one year low of $44.21 and a one year high of $70.45.

Las Vegas Sands (NYSE:LVS) last released 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). 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.31 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.66 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down .7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that Las Vegas Sands Corp. will post 3.09 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Las Vegas Sands Announces Dividend

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

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.