Calamos Advisors LLC Acquires 218,008 Shares of Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE:LVS)

Calamos Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE:LVS) by 128.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 387,453 shares of the casino operator’s stock after acquiring an additional 218,008 shares during the period. Calamos Advisors LLC owned 0.05% of Las Vegas Sands worth $19,900,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its position in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 159.6% during the third quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 9,130,486 shares of the casino operator’s stock worth $459,630,000 after acquiring an additional 5,612,975 shares during the period. ARGA Investment Management LP raised its position in shares of Las Vegas Sands by 24.8% in the 3rd quarter. ARGA Investment Management LP now owns 4,924,340 shares of the casino operator’s stock valued at $247,891,000 after purchasing an additional 977,636 shares during the last quarter. Suvretta Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Las Vegas Sands during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $24,370,000. Bamco Inc. NY raised its stake in Las Vegas Sands by 29.2% in the 3rd quarter. Bamco Inc. NY now owns 1,581,075 shares of the casino operator’s stock worth $79,591,000 after acquiring an additional 357,234 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James & Associates grew its stake in Las Vegas Sands by 82.2% during the 3rd quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 499,852 shares of the casino operator’s stock valued at $25,163,000 after purchasing an additional 225,510 shares during the last quarter. 39.16% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Las Vegas Sands Price Performance

Shares of NYSE LVS opened at $44.94 on Tuesday. Las Vegas Sands Corp. has a twelve month low of $36.62 and a twelve month high of $56.60. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.09. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $49.81 and a two-hundred day moving average of $46.79. The company has a market capitalization of $32.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.81, a PEG ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 1.08.

Las Vegas Sands (NYSE:LVS) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The casino operator reported $0.54 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.58 by ($0.04). Las Vegas Sands had a net margin of 12.80% and a return on equity of 43.76%. As a group, analysts expect that Las Vegas Sands Corp. will post 2.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Las Vegas Sands Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, February 19th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 10th will be given a $0.25 dividend. This is a positive change from Las Vegas Sands’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.23%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 10th. Las Vegas Sands’s dividend payout ratio is presently 40.61%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently weighed in on LVS. UBS Group lifted their price target on Las Vegas Sands from $49.00 to $50.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on Las Vegas Sands from $55.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price 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. Macquarie lifted their price target on shares of Las Vegas Sands from $57.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, Citigroup boosted their target price on Las Vegas Sands from $64.50 to $67.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $59.58.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Robert G. Goldstein sold 24,324 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $52.00, for a total transaction of $1,264,848.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 60,187 shares in the company, valued at $3,129,724. The trade was a 28.78 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Robert G. Goldstein sold 60,187 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $53.02, for a total value of $3,191,114.74. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.