Las Vegas Sands Reports First Quarter 2018 Results

- At Marina Bay Sands in Singapore, Adjusted Property EBITDA Increased 48.6% to $541 Million, While Hold-Normalized Adjusted Property EBITDA Increased 11.1% to $430 Million

- At Our Las Vegas Operating Properties, Adjusted Property EBITDA Increased 15.6% to $141 Million

- The Company Paid Quarterly Dividends of $0.75 per Share

- The Company Repurchased $75 Million of Common Stock

Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE: LVS), the world's leading developer and operator of convention-based Integrated Resorts, today reported financial results for the quarter ended March 31, 2018.

First Quarter Overview

Mr. Sheldon G. Adelson, chairman and chief executive officer, said, "We are extremely pleased to have delivered strong financial results in the quarter. Consolidated adjusted property EBITDA reached a record $1.50 billion, an increase of 30.7% compared to the first quarter of 2017. The power of our unique convention-based Integrated Resort business model was once again on display during the quarter, with record quarterly financial results achieved in Macao, Singapore and Las Vegas. We also continued to invest in growth initiatives in each of our markets while returning excess capital to shareholders."

The company paid a recurring quarterly dividend of $0.75 per common share during the quarter. The company announced that its next quarterly dividend of $0.75 per common share will be paid on June 28, 2018, to Las Vegas Sands shareholders of record on June 20, 2018. In addition, the company repurchased $75 million of common stock (1.0 million shares at a weighted average price of $71.54) during the quarter ended March 31, 2018.

Company-Wide Operating Results

Net revenue for the first quarter of 2018 increased 16.7% to $3.58 billion, compared to $3.07 billion in the first quarter of 2017. Net income increased 179.1% to $1.62 billion in the first quarter of 2018, compared to $579 million in the year-ago quarter.

Effective January 1, 2018, the Company adopted the new revenue recognition standard on a full retrospective basis. The adoption of this standard did not have a material impact on the Company's financial condition or net income. All 2017 financial results have been reclassified to conform to the current presentation.

On a GAAP (accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America) basis, operating income in the first quarter of 2018 increased 51.6% to $1.16 billion, compared to $764 million in the first quarter of 2017. The increase in operating income was primarily due to stronger results in Macao and at Marina Bay Sands in Singapore and the impact of a change in our depreciable lives during the third quarter of 2017, as discussed further below. Consolidated adjusted property EBITDA (a non-GAAP measure) of $1.50 billion increased 30.7% in the first quarter of 2018, compared to the year-ago quarter. On a hold-normalized basis, adjusted property EBITDA was $1.37 billion in the first quarter of 2018, an increase of 20.2% from the prior-year quarter.

On a GAAP basis, net income attributable to Las Vegas Sands in the first quarter of 2018 increased 202.7% to $1.46 billion, compared to $481 million in the first quarter of 2017, while diluted earnings per share in the first quarter of 2018 of $1.84 represented an increase of 201.6% compared to the prior-year quarter. The increase in net income attributable to Las Vegas Sands reflected the increase in operating income described above and a nonrecurring non-cash income tax benefit of $670 million due to applying U.S. tax reform enacted in December 2017 to the Company's 2018 income tax provision, discussed further below, partially offset by an increase in net income attributable to noncontrolling interests.

Adjusted net income attributable to Las Vegas Sands (a non-GAAP measure) increased 55.5% to $821 million, or $1.04 per diluted share, compared to $528 million, or $0.66 per diluted share, in the first quarter of 2017.

Sands China Ltd. Consolidated Financial Results

On a GAAP basis, total net revenues for Sands China Ltd. (SCL) increased 17% to $2.16 billion in the first quarter of 2018, compared to $1.84 billion in the first quarter of 2017. Net income for SCL increased 59% to $557 million in the first quarter of 2018, compared to $350 million in the first quarter of 2017.

Other Factors Affecting Earnings

Depreciation and amortization expense was $264 million in the first quarter of 2018, compared to $321 million in the first quarter of 2017. This decrease was driven primarily by a change in the estimated useful lives of our buildings, building improvements and land improvements accounted for as a change in accounting estimate beginning on July 1, 2017, and resulted in a reduction of depreciation and amortization expense and an increase in operating income of $64 million, and an increase of net income attributable to Las Vegas Sands of $46 million, or earnings per share of $0.06 on a basic and diluted basis, in the first quarter of 2018.

Interest expense, net of amounts capitalized, was $89 million for the first quarter of 2018, compared to $78 million in the prior-year quarter. Our weighted average borrowing cost in the first quarter of 2018 was approximately 3.5%, compared to 3.0% during the first quarter of 2017.

Other expense, which was comprised primarily of foreign currency losses due to a depreciation of the U.S. dollar versus the Singapore dollar during the period, was $26 million for the first quarter of 2018, compared to $36 million in the first quarter of 2017.

Our effective income tax rate for the first quarter of 2018 was (54.6)% compared to 10.6% in the prior-year quarter. The tax rate for the first quarter of 2018 is primarily driven by a nonrecurring non-cash benefit of $670 million due to the changes in U.S. tax law enacted in December 2017 and is based on our initial analysis of the application of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (the "Act" or "tax reform") to the 2018 income tax provision and may be adjusted in future periods as required. The benefit relates to concluding in the first quarter of 2018 on the application of Global Intangible Low-Taxed Income ("GILTI"), which resulted in the reversal of a valuation allowance related to our historical foreign tax credits. The Act creates complexity that will likely require implementation guidance from the Internal Revenue Service and could impact our tax return filing positions, which may impact the estimates and assumptions utilized in our initial analysis. This benefit is partially offset by a provision for the earnings from Marina Bay Sands at the 17% Singapore income tax rate. Our effective income tax rate for the first quarter of 2018 would have been 9.5% without the discrete benefit associated with changes in U.S. tax law.

The net income attributable to noncontrolling interests during the first quarter of 2018 of $160 million was principally related to SCL.

Balance Sheet Items

Unrestricted cash balances as of March 31, 2018 were $2.63 billion.

As of March 31, 2018, total debt outstanding, including the current portion and net of deferred financing costs (excluding those costs related to our revolving facilities) and original issue discount, was $9.65 billion.

Capital Expenditures

Capital expenditures during the first quarter totaled $238 million, including construction, development and maintenance activities of $125 million in Macao, $75 million in Las Vegas, $35 million at Marina Bay Sands and $3 million at Sands Bethlehem.

Conference Call Information

The company will host a conference call to discuss the company's results on Wednesday, April 25, 2018 at 1:30 p.m. Pacific Time. Interested parties may listen to the conference call through a webcast available on the company's website at www.sands.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements that are made pursuant to the Safe Harbor Provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements involve a number of risks, uncertainties or other factors beyond the company's control, which may cause material differences in actual results, performance or other expectations. These factors include, but are not limited to, general economic conditions, competition, new development, construction and ventures, substantial leverage and debt service, fluctuations in currency exchange rates and interest rates, government regulation, tax law changes and the impact of U.S. tax reform, legalization of gaming, natural or man-made disasters, terrorist acts or war, outbreaks of infectious diseases, insurance, gaming promoters, risks relating to our gaming licenses, certificate and subconcession, infrastructure in Macao, our subsidiaries' ability to make distribution payments to us, and other factors detailed in the reports filed by Las Vegas Sands Corp. with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date thereof. Las Vegas Sands Corp. assumes no obligation to update such information.

About Las Vegas Sands Corp.

Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE: LVS) is the world's pre-eminent developer and operator of world-class Integrated Resorts that feature luxury hotels; best-in-class gaming; retail; dining and entertainment; Meetings, Incentives, Convention and Exhibition (MICE) facilities; and many other business and leisure amenities. We pioneered the MICE-driven Integrated Resort, a unique, industry-leading and extremely successful model that serves both the business and leisure tourism markets.

Our properties include The Venetian and The Palazzo resorts and Sands Expo in Las Vegas, Sands Bethlehem in Eastern Pennsylvania, and the iconic Marina Bay Sands in Singapore. Through majority ownership in Sands China Ltd., LVS owns a portfolio of properties on the Cotai Strip in Macao, including The Venetian Macao, The Plaza and Four Seasons Hotel Macao, Sands Cotai Central and The Parisian Macao, as well as the Sands Macao on the Macao Peninsula.

LVS is dedicated to being a good corporate citizen, anchored by the core tenets of delivering a great working environment for our more than 50,000 team members worldwide, driving impact through its Sands Cares corporate giving program and leading innovation with the company's award-winning Sands ECO360 global sustainability program. To learn more, please visit www.sands.com.

Contacts:

Las Vegas Sands Corp.
First Quarter 2018 Results
Non-GAAP Measures

Within the company's first quarter 2018 press release, the company makes reference to certain non-GAAP financial measures that supplement the company's consolidated financial information prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America ("GAAP") including "adjusted net income," "adjusted earnings per diluted share," and "consolidated adjusted property EBITDA," which have directly comparable GAAP financial measures along with "adjusted property EBITDA margin," "hold-normalized adjusted property EBITDA," "hold-normalized adjusted property EBITDA margin," "hold-normalized adjusted net income," and "hold-normalized adjusted earnings per diluted share." The company believes these measures represent important internal measures of financial performance. Set forth in the financial schedules accompanying this release are reconciliations of the non-GAAP financial measures to the most directly comparable GAAP financial measures. The non-GAAP financial measure disclosure by the company has limitations and should not be considered a substitute for, or superior to, the financial measures prepared in accordance with GAAP. The definitions of our non-GAAP financial measures and the specific reasons why the company's management believes that the presentation of the non-GAAP financial measures provides useful information to investors regarding the company's financial condition, results of operations and cash flows are presented below.

The following non-GAAP financial measures are used by management, as well as industry analysts, to evaluate the company's operations and operating performance. These non-GAAP financial measures are presented so that investors have the same financial data that management uses in evaluating financial performance with the belief that it will assist the investment community in properly assessing the underlying financial performance of the company on a year-over-year and a quarter sequential basis.

Adjusted net income, which is a non-GAAP financial measure, excludes certain non-recurring corporate expenses, pre-opening expense, development expense, gain or loss on disposal of assets, loss on modification or early retirement of debt and other income or expense, attributable to Las Vegas Sands, net of income tax and an adjustment for a nonrecurring non-cash benefit due to U.S. tax reform enacted in 2017. Adjusted net income and adjusted earnings per diluted share are presented as supplemental disclosures as management believes they are (1) each widely used measures of performance by industry analysts and investors and (2) a principal basis for valuation of Integrated Resort companies, as these non-GAAP measures are considered by many as alternative measures on which to base expectations for future results. These measures also form the basis of certain internal management performance expectations.

Consolidated adjusted property EBITDA, which is a non-GAAP financial measure, is net income before stock-based compensation expense, corporate expense, pre-opening expense, development expense, depreciation and amortization, amortization of leasehold interests in land, gain or loss on disposal of assets, interest, other income or expense, gain or loss on modification or early retirement of debt and income taxes. Management utilizes consolidated adjusted property EBITDA to compare the operating profitability of its operations with those of its competitors, as well as a basis for determining certain incentive compensation. Integrated Resort companies have historically reported adjusted property EBITDA as a supplemental performance measure to GAAP financial measures. In order to view the operations of their casinos on a more stand-alone basis, Integrated Resort companies, including Las Vegas Sands, have historically excluded certain expenses that do not relate to the management of specific properties, such as pre-opening expense, development expense and corporate expense, from their adjusted property EBITDA calculations. Consolidated adjusted property EBITDA should not be interpreted as an alternative to income from operations (as an indicator of operating performance) or to cash flows from operations (as a measure of liquidity), in each case, as determined in accordance with GAAP. The company has significant uses of cash flow, including capital expenditures, dividend payments, interest payments, debt principal payments and income tax payments, which are not reflected in consolidated adjusted property EBITDA. Not all companies calculate adjusted property EBITDA in the same manner. As a result, consolidated adjusted property EBITDA as presented by Las Vegas Sands may not be directly comparable to similarly titled measures presented by other companies.

Hold-normalized adjusted property EBITDA, a supplemental non-GAAP financial measure, that, in addition to the aforementioned reasons for the presentation of consolidated adjusted property EBITDA, is presented to adjust for the impact of certain variances in table games' win percentages, which can vary from period to period. Hold-normalized adjusted property EBITDA is based on applying a Rolling Chip win percentage of 3.15% to the Rolling Chip volume for the quarter if the actual win percentage is outside the expected range of 3.0% to 3.3% for our Macao properties, applying a Rolling Chip win percentage of 2.85% to the Rolling Chip volume for the quarter if the actual win percentage is outside the expected range of 2.7% to 3.0% for our Singapore property, and applying a win percentage of 22.0% for Baccarat and 20.0% for non-Baccarat games to the respective table games drops for the quarter if the actual win percentages are outside the expected ranges of 18.0% to 26.0% for Baccarat and 16.0% to 24.0% for non-Baccarat at our Las Vegas properties. No hold adjustments are made for Sands Bethlehem. We do not present adjustments for Non-Rolling Chip drop for our table games play at our Macao and Singapore properties, nor for slots at any of our properties. Hold-normalized adjusted property EBITDA is also adjusted for the estimated gaming taxes, commissions paid to third parties on the incremental win, bad debt expense, discounts and other incentives that would have been incurred when applying the win percentages noted above to the respective gaming volumes. The hold-normalized adjusted property EBITDA measure presents a consistent measure for evaluating the operating performance of our properties from period to period.

Hold-normalized adjusted net income and hold-normalized adjusted earnings per diluted share are additional supplemental non-GAAP financial measures that, in addition to the aforementioned reasons for the presentation of adjusted net income and adjusted earnings per diluted share, are presented to adjust for the impact of certain variances in table games' win percentages, which can vary from period to period.

The company may also present the above items on a constant currency basis. This information is a non-GAAP financial measure that is calculated by translating current quarter local currency amounts to U.S. dollars based on prior period exchange rates. These amounts are compared to the prior period to derive non-GAAP constant-currency growth/decline. Management considers non-GAAP constant-currency growth/decline to be a useful metric to investors and management as it allows a more direct comparison of current performance to historical performance.

The company also makes reference to adjusted property EBITDA margin and hold-normalized adjusted property EBITDA margin, which are calculated using the aforementioned non-GAAP financial measures.

Exhibit 1
Las Vegas Sands Corp. and Subsidiaries
Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations
(In millions, except per share data)
(Unaudited)
	Three Months Ended
	March 31,
	2018				2017
Revenues:
Casino	$	2,599			$	2,157
Rooms	445				398
Food and beverage	228				212
Mall	156				157
Convention, retail and other	151				143
Net revenues	3,579				3,067
Operating expenses:
Resort operations	2,083				1,922
Corporate	56				42
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