Las Vegas Sands Profit Surges On Macau, Singapore Ops.

(RTTNews) - Casino operator Las Vegas Sands Corp. (LVS), Thursday posted a better-than-expected jump in third-quarter profit, on better patronage for its iconic properties in Macau, with Singapore also chipping in. Meanwhile growth at its Las Vegas operations were muted.

The company said its recurring annual dividend will be increased to $2.00 per share, or $0.50 per quarter, for the 2014 calendar year - an increase of 42.9 percent.

Las Vegas Sands' stunning results continue in Macau, which is the only place in China where gambling is legal. A booming market, Las Vegas Sands last year announced its Sands Cotai Central casino in this region and has been adding rooms and games to attract visitors.

Macau property portfolio had 16 million visits in the quarter, Las Vegas Sands said.

Meanwhile, rival Wynn Resorts Ltd. (WYNN) is pushing forward with an integrated resort in Macau's Cotai Strip. The resort, with a budget of $3.5 billion to $4 billion, is expected to open in the first half of 2016.

For the third quarter, Las Vegas Sands posted net income of $627 million or $0.76 per share, compared with $350 million or $0.42 per share last year.

Excluding items, adjusted earnings for the quarter were $681 million or $0.82 per share, compared with $382 million or $0.46 per share a year ago.

On average, 21 analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected earnings of $0.76 per share for the quarter. Analyst estimates typically exclude one-time items.

Net revenue for the third quarter jumped 31.7 percent to $3.57 billion from $2.71 billion a year ago. Analysts had a consensus revenue estimate of $3.47 billion for the quarter.

At its China operations - Sands China Ltd. - that encompasses five Macau properties, revenue jumped 42.7 percent year-over-year to $2.34 billion and profit was up 89 percent at $618 million.

At its key Venetian Macao casino, revenue climbed 21 percent to $935 million.

Sands Cotai Central generated revenue of $736 million, an increase of 150 percent. Patronage to this property exceeded 4.5 million visits during the quarter.

Four Seasons Hotel Macao and Plaza Casino revenue were up 47 percent at $330 million.

At Marina Bay Sands - its Singapore operations - revenue climbed 24 percent to $774 million.

Revenue from its Las Vegas operations grew 2.9 percent to $375 million.

Las Vegas Sands said its next recurring quarterly dividend of $0.35 per common share will be paid in December.

The company repurchased $299.9 million of its stock in the third quarter under its $2 billion buyback program.

The company's stock closed Wednesday at $70.97, up $1.44 or 2.07%, on a volume of 6 million shares on the NYSE. In after-hours, the stock traded at $71.24, up $0.27 or 0.38%. In the past 52-week period, the share traded in the range of $40.28 - $71.00.