Las Vegas Sands posts a quarterly profit

Posted May 6th 2009 11:30AM by Mark Fightmaster
Filed under: Earnings Reports, Las Vegas Sands (LVS)

Casino operator Las Vegas Sands (NYSE: LVS) announced that first-quarter adjusted profit totaled a penny per share, thanks to cost reductions and more Macau visitors. These results excluded some items, and topped the consensus estimate for a loss of roughly 2.5 cents per share.

LVS announced that its "fundamentals are getting better," with improving gaming revenue and tourism classified as "OK." The company also hopes that some visa restrictions may be removed, which could help its efforts to start a rally.

LVS has lowered its worker hours and cut jobs in order to cut costs and avoid potential defaults. The company also stopped a condominium development in Vegas and halted construction in Macau to help withstand the recession.

As for the LVS's Macau casino, visits increased 14% to more than 6 million during the quarter. Gambling revenue increased 7.8% as well, bucking the trend for the entire Las Vegas strip, which saw gambling revenue fall 23% in February and 15% in January, furthering last year's 11% drop -- the worst annual decline on record.

Technically, LVS has pulled its 10-week moving average into a pattern that could result in a bullish cross of its 20-week counterpart. This formation could be bullish indicator for the future; however, just about every stock could see an intermediate-term bullish crossover soon.

Casinos have been greatly impacted by the current economic environment -- and this could quickly turn around if gamblers are drawn back to the neon lights of Vegas.

Tags: casino earnings, CasinoEarnings, gambling, gambling stocks, GamblingStocks, inthenews, Las Vegas, LasVegas, Macau