Milestone Asset Management LLC Increases Stake in Vistra Corp. $VST

Milestone Asset Management LLC boosted its position in Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) by 34.1% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 28,095 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 7,149 shares during the period. Vistra accounts for approximately 1.0% of Milestone Asset Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 18th largest holding. Milestone Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Vistra were worth $5,504,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Banque Transatlantique SA grew its stake in Vistra by 132.0% in the 1st quarter. Banque Transatlantique SA now owns 232 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 132 shares in the last quarter. Twin Peaks Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Vistra in the second quarter worth $28,000. Anfield Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Vistra in the second quarter valued at $29,000. City State Bank raised its stake in shares of Vistra by 210.0% during the 2nd quarter. City State Bank now owns 155 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 105 shares during the period. Finally, WPG Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in Vistra during the 1st quarter worth about $37,000. 90.88% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the company. BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on Vistra from $236.00 to $245.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of Vistra from $249.00 to $233.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, December 16th. Cowen started coverage on shares of Vistra in a report on Wednesday, October 15th. They set a “buy” rating on the stock. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Vistra in a research note on Monday. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Vistra from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday, September 5th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Vistra currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $232.40.

Insider Activity at Vistra

In other news, EVP Carrie Lee Kirby sold 58,275 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $174.75, for a total transaction of $10,183,556.25. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 218,239 shares in the company, valued at approximately $38,137,265.25. This represents a 21.07% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Scott A. Hudson sold 56,000 shares of the business’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 value of $9,456,160.00. Following the completion of 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 position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 614,271 shares of company stock valued at $119,303,543 over the last 90 days. 1.42% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Vistra Trading Up 0.2%

Shares of VST opened at $161.95 on Thursday. Vistra Corp. has a 1-year low of $90.51 and a 1-year high of $219.82. The company has a market capitalization of $54.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 58.47, a P/E/G ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 1.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.74, a current ratio of 0.99 and a quick ratio of 0.88. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $178.82 and its 200 day simple moving average is $189.78.

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

Vistra Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 31st. Investors of record on Monday, December 22nd will be paid a $0.227 dividend. This is a boost from Vistra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. This represents a $0.91 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 22nd. Vistra’s payout ratio is currently 32.85%.

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.