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Las Vegas Sands
continued its pandemic-related string of losses in the second quarter as the company prepares to exit from Las Vegas and focus even more on overseas markets. But sales improved markedly.
Las Vegas Sands
(ticker: LVS) reported an adjusted quarterly loss from continuing operations of 29 cents a share, an improvement from minus 86 cents in the corresponding quarter of 2020. Second-quarter net revenues improved sharply to nearly $1.2 billion, up from the pandemic-depressed $62 million a year ago.
The stock was at $47.72 Thursday morning, down more than 3%. One concern: The company’s operations in Asia, notably Macau, face pandemic-related travel restrictions.
In early March, Las Vegas Sands announced that it was selling its Las Vegas real estate and operations for $6.25 billion. That transaction, which is expected to close in the fourth quarter, was a major shift for a company whose late CEO,
Sheldon Adelson,
was a towering figure on the Las Vegas Strip.
Adelson, who died in January at 87, was instrumental in moving the company into hosting conventions, a key niche that drove growth.
Looking ahead, an upside of the Vegas real estate sale is that it will give the company a lot more capital to invest in other opportunities in Asia and elsewhere.
The stock, however, has lagged behind the market this year, down about 20%.
In a note following the second-quarter earnings release, analyst
David Katz
of Jefferies wrote that the stock has “become primarily a play on the very gradual recovery and investments in Asia and ramping capital returns over time rather than the value compounding of past periods.”
The firm has a Buy rating on Las Vegas Sands.
In a conference call with analysts Wednesday after the market’s close, CEO
Robert Goldstein
said the performance in Macau was better than it was in the first quarter. “But pandemic-related travel restrictions continued to impact our performance,” he said, adding that he was confident about the recovery in Macau and Singapore.
Sands China reported a second quarter net loss of $166 million, down from $549 million a year earlier.
The company has made Macau a priority. In 2019 before the pandemic struck, Macau accounted for well over half of the company’s sales.
The company, however, continues to look at launching other gambling operations in the U.S. “Texas, we remain very committed to pursing,” Goldstein told analysts Wednesday.
Earlier this month, Las Vegas Sands announced that it was putting together a digital gaming investment team. Digital gaming and online sports betting have been the rage among casino companies, many of which have invested considerable capital and resources. Las Vegas Sands will need to play catch up there.
Write to Lawrence C. Strauss at [email protected]