Vistra Corp. $VST Stock Position Trimmed by Ascent Group LLC

Ascent Group LLC lessened its holdings in shares of Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) by 46.8% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 8,437 shares of the company’s stock after selling 7,426 shares during the period. Ascent Group LLC’s holdings in Vistra were worth $1,653,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. First American Bank grew its stake in shares of Vistra by 5.9% in the third quarter. First American Bank now owns 21,154 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,144,000 after purchasing an additional 1,171 shares in the last quarter. Petros Family Wealth LLC bought a new position in Vistra in the 3rd quarter valued at about $372,000. HM Payson & Co. increased its stake in Vistra by 209.0% during the 3rd quarter. HM Payson & Co. now owns 309 shares of the company’s stock valued at $61,000 after buying an additional 209 shares during the period. Ethic Inc. raised its position in shares of Vistra by 9.3% during the 3rd quarter. Ethic Inc. now owns 6,047 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,185,000 after buying an additional 516 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Slocum Gordon & Co LLP raised its position in shares of Vistra by 16.7% during the 3rd quarter. Slocum Gordon & Co LLP now owns 1,400 shares of the company’s stock worth $274,000 after buying an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. 90.88% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO James A. Burke sold 41,426 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, October 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $201.32, for a total value of $8,339,882.32. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 246,522 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $49,629,809.04. This represents a 14.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Scott A. Hudson sold 56,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $168.86, for a total value of $9,456,160.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 306,600 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $51,772,476. This trade represents a 15.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 510,945 shares of company stock worth $98,584,693 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 1.42% of the company’s stock.

Vistra Trading Down 0.8%

Vistra stock opened at $161.37 on Friday. Vistra Corp. has a 52 week low of $90.51 and a 52 week high of $219.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.74, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 0.99. The firm has a market capitalization of $54.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 58.26, a P/E/G ratio of 2.68 and a beta of 1.41. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $174.86 and a 200 day moving average price of $189.31.

Vistra (NYSE:VST) last released its earnings results on Friday, November 7th. The company reported $1.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.78 by ($0.03). The business had revenue of $4.97 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.60 billion. Vistra had a net margin of 6.70% and a return on equity of 64.04%. Research analysts forecast that Vistra Corp. will post 7 EPS for the current year.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 22nd were paid a dividend of $0.227 per share. This is an increase from Vistra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 22nd. This represents a $0.91 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.6%. Vistra’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 32.85%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Daiwa Capital Markets upgraded shares of Vistra from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $250.00 price objective for the company in a report on Wednesday, September 17th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on Vistra from $236.00 to $245.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 7th. Wells Fargo & Company started coverage on Vistra in a research note on Monday, October 27th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $238.00 price objective on the stock. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Vistra in a report on Monday. Finally, Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $228.00 target price on shares of Vistra in a report on Tuesday, December 16th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have given a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $232.40.

Vistra Profile

Vistra (NYSE: VST) is an integrated power company that develops, owns and operates electricity generation and retail businesses in the United States. The company’s operations span wholesale power production—through a diversified fleet of thermal and lower‑carbon generation assets—and retail electricity supply to residential, commercial and industrial customers. Vistra serves organized wholesale markets and competitive retail markets, with a notable presence in Texas and other regional U.S. power markets.

Vistra’s core activities include the ownership and operation of generation facilities, the commercial dispatch and optimization of those assets into wholesale markets, and the sale of electricity and related services to end-use customers through its retail brands.