Vistra Corp. $VST Shares Sold by Smithfield Trust Co

Smithfield Trust Co trimmed its holdings in Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) by 6.1% in the second quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 10,349 shares of the company’s stock after selling 671 shares during the quarter. Smithfield Trust Co’s holdings in Vistra were worth $2,006,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Police & Firemen s Retirement System of New Jersey lifted its position in shares of Vistra by 4.1% during the 2nd quarter. Police & Firemen s Retirement System of New Jersey now owns 51,398 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,961,000 after buying an additional 2,024 shares during the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its stake in Vistra by 35.3% during the 2nd quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 48,818 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,461,000 after acquiring an additional 12,734 shares in the last quarter. Kelleher Financial Advisors lifted its position in Vistra by 21.8% in the second quarter. Kelleher Financial Advisors now owns 2,770 shares of the company’s stock valued at $537,000 after acquiring an additional 496 shares during the last quarter. Comprehensive Financial Planning Inc. PA boosted its stake in Vistra by 492.1% in the second quarter. Comprehensive Financial Planning Inc. PA now owns 2,682 shares of the company’s stock valued at $520,000 after acquiring an additional 2,229 shares in the last quarter. Finally, United Asset Strategies Inc. boosted its stake in Vistra by 1.4% in the second quarter. United Asset Strategies Inc. now owns 10,716 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,077,000 after acquiring an additional 144 shares in the last quarter. 90.88% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Vistra Trading Down 0.5%

Shares of VST opened at $178.19 on Thursday. Vistra Corp. has a twelve month low of $90.51 and a twelve month high of $219.82. The company has a current ratio of 0.99, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.74. The firm has a market capitalization of $60.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 64.33, a PEG ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 1.30. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $198.68 and its two-hundred day moving average is $186.01.

Vistra (NYSE:VST) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 6th. The company reported $1.75 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.78 by ($0.03). Vistra had a return on equity of 64.04% and a net margin of 6.70%.The firm had revenue of $4.97 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.60 billion. On average, research analysts predict that Vistra Corp. will post 7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 22nd will be given a $0.227 dividend. This is an increase from Vistra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. This represents a $0.91 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 22nd. Vistra’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 32.49%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently weighed in on VST shares. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “hold” rating and issued a $230.00 target price (down from $241.00) on shares of Vistra in a report on Monday, September 22nd. Scotiabank assumed coverage on Vistra in a research note on Monday, September 22nd. They issued a “sector outperform” rating and a $256.00 price objective for the company. Evercore ISI increased their price objective on Vistra from $237.00 to $243.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 7th. Melius assumed coverage on shares of Vistra in a report on Wednesday, August 20th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $295.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Daiwa Capital Markets upgraded shares of Vistra from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $250.00 price target for the company in a research note on Wednesday, September 17th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have issued a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Vistra currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $234.21.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO James A. Burke sold 43,074 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $208.75, for a total value of $8,991,697.50. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 217,025 shares in the company, valued at $45,303,968.75. The trade was a 16.56% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Over the last three months, insiders sold 723,910 shares of company stock worth $148,086,569. 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.