Critical Contrast: Canterbury Park (NASDAQ:CPHC) vs. Las Vegas Sands (NYSE:LVS)

Canterbury Park (NASDAQ:CPHC) and Las Vegas Sands (NYSE:LVS) are both consumer discretionary companies, but which is the superior business? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their earnings, dividends, analyst recommendations, profitability, risk, institutional ownership and valuation.

Risk and Volatility

Canterbury Park has a beta of -0.4, meaning that its stock price is 140% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Las Vegas Sands has a beta of 0.78, meaning that its stock price is 22% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Canterbury Park and Las Vegas Sands”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Canterbury Park	$59.57 million	1.38	-$530,000.00	$0.02	794.95
Las Vegas Sands	$13.02 billion	1.83	$1.63 billion	$2.57	14.29

Las Vegas Sands has higher revenue and earnings than Canterbury Park. Las Vegas Sands is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Canterbury Park, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Dividends

Canterbury Park pays an annual dividend of $0.28 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.8%. Las Vegas Sands pays an annual dividend of $1.20 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.3%. Canterbury Park pays out 1,400.0% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Las Vegas Sands pays out 46.7% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Las Vegas Sands has raised its dividend for 2 consecutive years. Las Vegas Sands is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

76.4% of Canterbury Park shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 39.2% of Las Vegas Sands shares are owned by institutional investors. 23.7% of Canterbury Park shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 0.6% of Las Vegas Sands shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Profitability

This table compares Canterbury Park and Las Vegas Sands’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Canterbury Park	0.20%	0.14%	0.10%
Las Vegas Sands	12.59%	133.90%	9.99%

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current ratings and recommmendations for Canterbury Park and Las Vegas Sands, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Canterbury Park	1	0	0	0	1.00
Las Vegas Sands	0	10	11	0	2.52

Las Vegas Sands has a consensus target price of $59.69, indicating a potential upside of 62.48%. Given Las Vegas Sands’ stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe Las Vegas Sands is more favorable than Canterbury Park.

Summary

Las Vegas Sands beats Canterbury Park on 14 of the 17 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Canterbury Park

Canterbury Park Holding Corp. engages in hosting and managing pari mutuel wagering activities. It operates through the following business segments: Horse Racing, Card Casino, Food & Beverage and Development. The Horse Racing segment includes simulcast and live horse racing operations. The Card Casino segment holds unbanked card games, poker and table games. The Food and Beverage segment consists of concession stands, restaurant and buffet, bars, and other food venues. The Development segment owns land for racetrack operations. Canterbury Park Holding was founded by Curtis A. Samson, Randall D. Sampson, and Dale H. Schenian on March 24, 1994 and is headquartered in Shakopee, MN.

About Las Vegas Sands

Las Vegas Sands Corp., together with its subsidiaries, develops, owns, and operates integrated resorts in Macao and Singapore. It owns and operates The Venetian Macao Resort Hotel, the Londoner Macao, The Parisian Macao, The Plaza Macao and Four Seasons Hotel Macao, Cotai Strip, and the Sands Macao in Macao, the People’s Republic of China; and Marina Bay Sands in Singapore. The company’s integrated resorts feature accommodations, gaming, entertainment and retail malls, convention and exhibition facilities, celebrity chef restaurants, and other amenities. Las Vegas Sands Corp. was founded in 1988 and is based in Las Vegas, Nevada.