Replies to post #1432 on EPS & Earnings ... Hits & Misses

[madrose1]

LVS 91-87-81 beats by a penny revs flat/inline 1st-Quarter Profit Falls on Casino Opening Expenses

LAS VEGAS (AP) -- Las Vegas Sands Corp., the casino company run by billionaire Sheldon Adelson, said Wednesday its net profit for the first quarter fell 25 percent from a year ago, saying expenses increased due to planned casino openings in Macau, Singapore and the United States.
Net income dropped to $90.9 million, or 26 cents per share, compared to $121.8 million, or 34 cents a share, a year ago. Revenue grew 18.5 percent to $628.2 million.
.

Las Vegas Sands: Color on quarter (88.54 ) : Wachovia notes LVS reported Q1 2007 EPS results of $0.32 vs firm's est of $0.29 and the Street consensus of $0.32. Firm says the numbers out of Sands Macau weighed on results in Q1.

Total EBITDA of $102 mln was down nearly 2% yr/yr and came in more than $14 mln below their est of $116 mln. Mass market table drop was essentially flat yr/yr, which firm believes is disappointing. Firm was relatively disappointed with the results in Q1, especially out of Sands Macau.

Sands Macau was affected by the additional competition in Q1, as well as higher than expected expenses related to the opening of the property. These expenses ($12 mln) in Q1 are likely to remain in Q2. They think these type of player retention costs are likely to be expected, as the Cotai Strip opens...

Deutsche notes LVS reported an in-line quarter with Las Vegas coming in at the high end of the pre-announced range, offset by softer results in Macau. Macau was modestly below firm's expectations and impacted by a $12 mln in atypical expenses... KeyBanc says despite the appearance of an in line quarter for LVS, a second look at the numbers reveals certain discrepancies that suggest results were somewhat lower than expected. This, coupled with the co's recent track record of soundly beating expectations, may inspire a less than enthusiastic near-term reaction regarding LVS shares. While LVS has two major projects opening during the remainder of this year, they believe the operating environment in Macau and Las Vegas will be increasingly challenging for all.

>