Navellier & Associates Inc. Grows Stock Holdings in Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST)

Navellier & Associates Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) by 8.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 118,147 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 8,869 shares during the period. Vistra comprises approximately 2.0% of Navellier & Associates Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 8th biggest position. Navellier & Associates Inc.’s holdings in Vistra were worth $16,289,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Creative Planning boosted its stake in shares of Vistra by 33.3% during the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 31,052 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,681,000 after acquiring an additional 7,753 shares in the last quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Vistra during the third quarter valued at $216,000. Signaturefd LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Vistra by 12.6% during the third quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 2,604 shares of the company’s stock valued at $309,000 after purchasing an additional 292 shares during the last quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC boosted its position in shares of Vistra by 4.8% in the 3rd quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 8,366 shares of the company’s stock valued at $992,000 after purchasing an additional 381 shares during the period. Finally, Hartford Investment Management Co. increased its stake in Vistra by 3.4% in the 3rd quarter. Hartford Investment Management Co. now owns 21,700 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,572,000 after purchasing an additional 718 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.88% of the company’s stock.

Vistra Trading Down 7.8 %

NYSE VST opened at $150.51 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.68. Vistra Corp. has a 1-year low of $46.18 and a 1-year high of $199.84. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $160.19 and its 200-day simple moving average is $131.92. The company has a market capitalization of $51.21 billion, a PE ratio of 28.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 1.22.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 20th will be given a $0.2235 dividend. This is a positive change from Vistra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. This represents a $0.89 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.59%. Vistra’s dividend payout ratio is presently 16.60%.

Vistra declared that its board has approved a stock buyback program on Thursday, November 7th that allows the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to repurchase up to 2.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have commented on the stock. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on shares of Vistra from $151.00 to $191.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Vistra from $161.00 to $174.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Vistra from $135.00 to $169.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Evercore ISI assumed coverage on shares of Vistra in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. They set an “outperform” rating and a $202.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Bank of America initiated coverage on Vistra in a research report on Monday, January 27th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $206.00 target price for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $171.64.

Insider Transactions at Vistra

In other Vistra news, EVP Scott A. Hudson sold 115,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $164.16, for a total value of $18,878,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 254,932 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $41,849,637.12. The trade was a 31.09 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Scott B. Helm sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $139.77, for a total transaction of $2,795,400.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 343,350 shares in the company, valued at approximately $47,990,029.50. This trade represents a 5.50 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 1.42% of the company’s stock.

Vistra Company Profile

Vistra Corp., together with its subsidiaries, operates as an integrated retail electricity and power generation company. The company operates through six segments: Retail, Texas, East, West, Sunset, and Asset Closure. It retails electricity and natural gas to residential, commercial, and industrial customers across states in the United States and the District of Columbia.