Vistra Corp. $VST Stake Boosted by Korea Investment CORP

Korea Investment CORP boosted its holdings in Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) by 6.3% during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 503,121 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 29,646 shares during the period. Korea Investment CORP’s holdings in Vistra were worth $97,510,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Bridgewater Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of Vistra by 4.0% during the 2nd quarter. Bridgewater Advisors Inc. now owns 1,734 shares of the company’s stock worth $333,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares during the period. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC increased its position in Vistra by 2.2% in the second quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 3,256 shares of the company’s stock worth $631,000 after buying an additional 71 shares during the period. Fogel Capital Management Inc. increased its position in Vistra by 0.9% in the second quarter. Fogel Capital Management Inc. now owns 7,897 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,531,000 after buying an additional 72 shares during the period. Red Mountain Financial LLC lifted its stake in Vistra by 3.1% in the second quarter. Red Mountain Financial LLC now owns 2,435 shares of the company’s stock valued at $472,000 after buying an additional 74 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Parallel Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Vistra by 3.1% during the second quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 2,528 shares of the company’s stock valued at $490,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares during the period. 90.88% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Vistra Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE VST opened at $177.14 on Thursday. Vistra Corp. has a 1 year low of $90.51 and a 1 year high of $219.82. The firm has a market cap of $60.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 63.95, a PEG ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.30. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $193.22 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $188.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.74, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 0.99.

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

Vistra Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 22nd will be issued a $0.227 dividend. This represents a $0.91 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 22nd. This is a positive change from Vistra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. Vistra’s dividend payout ratio is currently 32.49%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Carrie Lee Kirby sold 58,275 shares of Vistra stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $174.75, for a total value of $10,183,556.25. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 218,239 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $38,137,265.25. The trade was a 21.07% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Scott A. Hudson sold 56,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $168.86, for a total transaction of $9,456,160.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 306,600 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $51,772,476. The trade was a 15.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last quarter, insiders sold 868,339 shares of company stock worth $173,242,584. Corporate insiders own 1.42% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

VST has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on shares of Vistra from $179.00 to $203.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 13th. Wall Street Zen lowered Vistra from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, September 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Vistra from $227.00 to $248.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 24th. KeyCorp began coverage on Vistra in a research report on Monday. They set an “overweight” rating and a $217.00 price target for the company. Finally, Daiwa America raised Vistra from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 17th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have issued a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Vistra currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $233.20.

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.