Vistra Corp. $VST Shares Purchased by DSC Meridian Capital LP

DSC Meridian Capital LP boosted its position in shares of Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) by 48.7% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 147,699 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 48,350 shares during the quarter. Vistra makes up 5.5% of DSC Meridian Capital LP’s portfolio, making the stock its 9th biggest holding. DSC Meridian Capital LP’s holdings in Vistra were worth $23,429,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in VST. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in Vistra by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 41,588,784 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,709,519,000 after acquiring an additional 390,157 shares in the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Vistra in the second quarter valued at about $4,610,496,000. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Vistra by 2.7% in the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 16,474,869 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,657,891,000 after purchasing an additional 432,028 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Vistra by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,965,648 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,441,112,000 after purchasing an additional 97,424 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Vistra in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $746,729,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.88% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Vistra

In other Vistra news, Director John R. Sult sold 6,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $170.00, for a total transaction of $1,105,000.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 70,714 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,021,380. This trade represents a 8.42% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Paul M. Barbas sold 244 shares of Vistra stock in a transaction on Monday, June 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $153.00, for a total transaction of $37,332.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 53,006 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,109,918. This trade represents a 0.46% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 41,588 shares of company stock worth $6,739,227. Company insiders own 0.92% of the company’s stock.

Vistra Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:VST opened at $135.74 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $45.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.93 and a beta of 1.41. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $153.38 and a 200-day simple moving average of $155.72. Vistra Corp. has a 52 week low of $132.66 and a 52 week high of $219.82. The company has a quick ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.87.

Vistra (NYSE:VST) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, August 7th. The company reported $0.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.61 by ($0.85). Vistra had a return on equity of 108.68% and a net margin of 11.55%.The business had revenue of $4.02 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.46 billion. Equities research analysts forecast that Vistra Corp. will post 9.23 EPS for the current year.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Investors of record on Monday, September 21st will be given a dividend of $0.23 per share. This represents a $0.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. This is a positive change from Vistra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 21st. Vistra’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 15.54%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently issued reports on VST shares. Raymond James Financial set a $208.00 price objective on Vistra in a research report on Monday, April 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on Vistra from $240.00 to $231.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Scotiabank raised their price target on Vistra from $293.00 to $298.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. UBS Group cut their price target on Vistra from $233.00 to $227.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, July 28th. Finally, Mizuho started coverage on Vistra in a research report on Monday. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $169.00 price objective on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have given a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Vistra currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $223.53.

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.