National Pension Service Has $127.50 Million Stock Position in Vistra Corp. $VST

National Pension Service trimmed its stake in shares of Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) by 33.9% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 790,320 shares of the company’s stock after selling 405,473 shares during the period. National Pension Service’s holdings in Vistra were worth $127,502,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in VST. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its holdings in Vistra by 24.1% during the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 20,190 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,371,000 after purchasing an additional 3,920 shares in the last quarter. Woodline Partners LP boosted its holdings in Vistra by 40.7% during the first quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 28,744 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,376,000 after purchasing an additional 8,312 shares in the last quarter. Focus Partners Wealth boosted its holdings in Vistra by 37.3% during the first quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 7,828 shares of the company’s stock valued at $920,000 after purchasing an additional 2,125 shares in the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Vistra during the second quarter valued at approximately $269,000. Finally, Slocum Gordon & Co LLP boosted its holdings in Vistra by 20.0% during the second quarter. Slocum Gordon & Co LLP now owns 1,200 shares of the company’s stock valued at $233,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. 90.88% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Vistra Stock Down 0.1%

Shares of VST opened at $160.10 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $53.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.82 and a beta of 1.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.51, a current ratio of 0.90 and a quick ratio of 0.79. Vistra Corp. has a one year low of $132.66 and a one year high of $219.82. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $154.20 and its 200-day simple moving average is $162.07.

Vistra (NYSE:VST) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $2.87 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.32 by $1.55. The business had revenue of $5.64 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.22 billion. Vistra had a return on equity of 105.64% and a net margin of 11.52%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Vistra Corp. will post 9.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 22nd will be issued a $0.229 dividend. This represents a $0.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 22nd. This is an increase from Vistra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. Vistra’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 15.24%.

Insider Activity at Vistra

In other news, EVP Stephanie Zapata Moore sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $160.31, for a total value of $1,603,100.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 114,409 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $18,340,906.79. The trade was a 8.04% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CAO Margaret Montemayor sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $164.96, for a total value of $824,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 14,360 shares in the company, valued at $2,368,825.60. The trade was a 25.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.92% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $241.00 target price on shares of Vistra in a report on Monday, March 2nd. TD Cowen lowered their target price on shares of Vistra from $253.00 to $230.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, May 4th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of Vistra from $236.00 to $234.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 27th. Raymond James Financial set a $208.00 target price on shares of Vistra in a report on Monday, April 27th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of Vistra from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $205.00 target price on the stock in a report on Friday, February 6th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $233.33.

About Vistra

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.