Mystic Asset Management Inc. Reduces Holdings in Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE:LVS)

Mystic Asset Management Inc. trimmed its holdings in shares of Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE:LVS) by 3.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 14,184 shares of the casino operator’s stock after selling 550 shares during the period. Mystic Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Las Vegas Sands were worth $728,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 3.6% in the 3rd quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 6,050 shares of the casino operator’s stock valued at $305,000 after purchasing an additional 213 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. boosted its holdings in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 4.7% in the 3rd quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. now owns 5,062 shares of the casino operator’s stock valued at $255,000 after purchasing an additional 229 shares during the last quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 3.7% in the 4th quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 6,505 shares of the casino operator’s stock valued at $334,000 after purchasing an additional 231 shares during the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB boosted its holdings in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 45.6% in the 4th quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 760 shares of the casino operator’s stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 238 shares during the last quarter. Finally, 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. 39.16% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $51.00 to $49.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 24th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Las Vegas Sands from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $60.00 to $69.00 in a report on Friday, January 3rd. Macquarie lifted their target price on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $57.00 to $58.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their target price on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $66.00 to $62.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $64.50 to $67.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report 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. Based on data from MarketBeat, Las Vegas Sands currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $59.42.

Las Vegas Sands Stock Performance

Las Vegas Sands stock opened at $43.67 on Tuesday. Las Vegas Sands Corp. has a 12-month low of $36.62 and a 12-month high of $56.61. The company has a market capitalization of $31.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.07. 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 firm’s fifty day moving average price is $44.50 and its 200 day moving average price is $47.69.

Las Vegas Sands (NYSE:LVS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The casino operator reported $0.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.58 by ($0.04). Las Vegas Sands had a return on equity of 45.82% and a net margin of 12.80%. On average, research analysts forecast that Las Vegas Sands Corp. will post 2.6 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Las Vegas Sands Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 19th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 10th were given a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 10th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.29%. This is an increase from Las Vegas Sands’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. Las Vegas Sands’s payout ratio is presently 50.76%.

Las Vegas Sands 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.