Sonus Networks, Dillard's And Las Vegas Sands Highlighted As Zacks Bull And Bear Of The Day

For Immediate Release

Chicago, IL – Oct 26, 2017 – Zacks Equity Research highlights Sonus Networks (NASDAQ:SONS) as the Bull of the Day and Dillard’s (NYSE:DDS) as the Bear of the Day. In addition, Zacks Equity Research provides analysis ontheLas Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE:LVS) .

Here is a synopsis of all three stocks:

Bull of the Day:

Tech is one of those sectors of the market that’s just always going to be leading the way. Almost by definition tech stocks are going to be growthy and expanding into new markets. That’s exactly the sort of thing you should be looking for when figuring out where to invest your hard-earned money for the long-term. Today’s Bull of the Day is a company that’s trying to expand the voice and data network globally.

Sonus Networks provides networked solutions worldwide. The company offers Session Border Controllers (SBCs) that address security and interworking requirements for small, medium, and large businesses, as well as regional and global communications service providers; Sonus GSX9000 Open Services Switch, which bridges IP and TDM networks by converting voice signal into Internet Protocol (IP) IP packets and transmitting those IP packets on a data network; and Sonus T7000 Intelligent Switching System, a class five end-office soft switch that provides residential and business voice services, as well as IP-IP multimedia processing engine services.

The stock is a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) in an industry that ranks in the Top 15% of our Zacks Industry Rank. A big reason for the favorable Zacks Rank is the recent earnings estimate revisions to the upside the company has seen from analysts. Over the last thirty days, three analysts have increased their estimates for the current quarter while two have done so for the current year. The bullish sentiment has increased our Zacks Consensus Estimate for the current quarter from 16 cents to 23 cents while increasing current year estimates from 23 cents to 27 cents.

Another boost for bullish shareholders comes from Sonus Network’s valuations. Looking at its price to sales ratio, SONS is only trading 1.5x sales. Compare that to the S&P 500 average of 3.0x earnings and you see why some feel SONS is undervalued here.

Bear of the Day:

I feel like beating up on retail is kicking a dead horse. We all know the plight of the brick-and-mortar shop. As more and more shopping goes online, retailers are struggling to keep afloat. Frankly, I feel it’s a great opportunity for retailers to differentiate themselves. It also kills off the weak hands and those companies that have been slacking off for too long. If you offer an inferior customer experience to go along with zero customer service and homogenous products then guess what? You deserve to go out of business.

I’m not saying that today’s Bear of the Day is going out of business. I’m just saying that there are more attractive corners of the market than this one. And this one is Dillard’s.Dillard's, Inc. operates as fashion apparel, cosmetics, and home furnishing retailer in the United States. It operates through two segments, Retail Operations and Construction. The company's stores offer a selection of merchandise, including fashion apparel for women, men, and children; accessories; cosmetics; home furnishings; and other consumer goods. Its brand merchandise includes Antonio Melani, Gianni Bini, GB, Roundtree & Yorke, and Daniel Cremieux. The company also sells its merchandise online through its Website, dillards.com, which features online gift registries and various other services. In addition, it operates a general contracting construction company that engages in constructing and remodeling stores. As of January 28, 2017, the company operated 293 Dillard's stores, including 25 clearance centers; and an Internet store.

The company is a Zacks Rank #5 (Strong Sell) right now because of some bearish activity in its earnings estimates. Two analysts have dropped their estimates for the current quarter, current year and next year. The bearish moves have caused the Zacks Consensus Estimate for the current year to come down from 35 cents to 23 cents. The current year number has plummeted from $4.01 to 3.33. Next year is now showing there will be a contraction in earnings, coming down to $3.06 from $3.69.

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Las Vegas Sands (LVS) Posts Big Earnings Beat

Las Vegas Sands Corp. just released its third quarter fiscal 2017 earnings results, posting earnings of 77 cents per share and revenue of $3.2 billion. Currently, LVS is a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold), and is up 1.65% to $63.95 per share in trading shortly after its earnings report was released.

The casino giant:

Beat earnings estimates.The company posted earnings of 77 cents per share, soaring past the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 67 cents per share; this number excludes 5 cents from non-recurring items. Net income was $685 million for the quarter.

Beat revenue estimates.The company saw revenue figures of $3.2 billion, topping our consensus estimate of $3.12 billion and increasing 7.7% year-over-year.

Consolidated adjusted property EBITDA increased 6% to $1.21 billion, while LVS said that hold-normalized adjusted property EBITDA surged 10.4% to $1.18 billion.

The company said that total net revenues for Sands China increased 12.2% to $1.93 billion, and The Venetian Macao generated revenues of $718 million.

"In Macao, the market continues to recover, while Sands China's Mass and VIP gaming volumes both outpaced the growth in the Macao market overall. That strong gaming performance, coupled with higher hotel occupancy and retail mall revenues, helped drive an adjusted property EBITDA performance of $652 million, our best quarterly result since the first quarter of 2014,” said Sheldon G. Adelson, chairman and CEO.

Las Vegas Sands is a hotel, gaming, and retail mall company headquartered in Las Vegas, Nevada. The company owns The Venetian Resort Hotel Casino, the Sands Expo and Convention Center, Venetian Interactive, an internet based venture, and Venetian Macao Limited, a developer of multiple casino hotel resort properties in The People's Republic of China's Special Administrative Region of Macao.

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About the Bull and Bear of the Day

Every day, the analysts at Zacks Equity Research select two stocks that are likely to outperform (Bull) or underperform (Bear) the markets over the next 3-6 months.

About Zacks Equity Research

Zacks Equity Research provides the best of quantitative and qualitative analysis to help investors know what stocks to buy and which to sell for the long-term.

Continuous analyst coverage is provided for a universe of 1,150 publicly traded stocks. Our analysts are organized by industry which gives them keen insights to developments that affect company profits and stock performance. Recommendations and target prices are six-month time horizons.

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