Some good news for Las Vegas Sands
March 13, 2009 - 2:19 pm
Las Vegas Sands Corp. finally got some positive news Friday; an analyst thinks the company will survive.
Janet Brashear of Bernstein Research said Las Vegas Sands might be able to sell some minority equity interest in some of its casinos. It could also sell some of its properties in Macau outright to help shore up its finances. The company is carrying some $10.5 billion in debt.
This hasn’t been the best of weeks for Las Vegas Sands. The company replaced long-time President Bill Weidner with a former hospitality executive who spent the past seven months running the Georgia Aquarium in Atlanta.
Also, Chairman Sheldon Adelson saw his net worth tumble by $22.6 billion on the Forbes list of billionaires.
But Brashear said things are looking up.
Las Vegas Sands will open the $700 million Sands Bethlehem in Pennsylvania in May and the $5 billion Marina Bay Sands in Singapore by the end of the year.
“Singapore, in particular, is well positioned in a strong market with significant upside potential,” Brasher wrote in a client note.
Brashear forecasts that the company will be successful in Singapore while conditions in Macau and Las Vegas will stabilize by the end of the year.
“If you believe that (Las Vegas Sands) lasts the next two years, the stock should significantly outperform,” she said.
Brashear set an $8 price target for the company’s shares on the New York Stock Exchange.
Las Vegas Sands closed Friday at $2.27, up 50 cents or 28.25 percent.