Casino operator Las Vegas Sands (NYSE: LVS) has been trending lower since falling below its 50-day moving average back in June. A clear trend channel has formed and seems to be guiding the stock lower.
What is interesting is that the 50-day hasn’t been touched as it is just slightly above the upper rail of the channel, but running parallel to the rail.
The stock saw the so-called death cross of the 50-day dropping below its 200-day moving average in August and then fell approximately 25% from that point to the low in late October.
The fundamental picture for LVS is mixed. The earnings and the sales growth have been below average over the last few years, but the company’s profitability measurements have been above average.
Earnings have averaged annual growth of 13% over the last three years while sales have grown at a rate of 6%. In the most recent quarterly report earnings were flat while sales grew by 7%.
Where the company is above average is with its return on equity of 38.1% and the profit margin of 24.8%.
The sentiment toward Las Vegas Sands is pretty bullish considering how much the stock has slipped recently. The short interest ratio is only 2.26 and analysts are pretty bullish. Out of 17 analysts following the stock, 12 have it rated as a “buy” while five have it rated as a “hold”. I would have expected the distribution to have been more like half buys and half holds or lower.