Nomura Holdings Inc. Sells 45,607 Shares of Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST)

Nomura Holdings Inc. trimmed its holdings in Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) by 69.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 20,169 shares of the company’s stock after selling 45,607 shares during the quarter. Nomura Holdings Inc.’s holdings in Vistra were worth $2,781,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in VST. Grassi Investment Management bought a new stake in shares of Vistra during the 4th quarter valued at about $383,000. AdvisorNet Financial Inc grew its stake in shares of Vistra by 315.1% during the 4th quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 631 shares of the company’s stock valued at $87,000 after purchasing an additional 479 shares during the period. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Vistra by 4.4% during the 4th quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,913 shares of the company’s stock valued at $402,000 after purchasing an additional 122 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. bought a new stake in shares of Vistra during the 4th quarter valued at about $27,531,000. Finally, Park Avenue Securities LLC grew its stake in shares of Vistra by 42.8% during the 4th quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 13,641 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,881,000 after purchasing an additional 4,091 shares during the period. 90.88% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Vistra

In other news, Director John William Pitesa acquired 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $126.75 per share, with a total value of $190,125.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 3,467 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $439,442.25. The trade was a 76.26% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Paul M. Barbas sold 24,136 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.19, for a total value of $2,997,449.84. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 51,063 shares in the company, valued at $6,341,513.97. This trade represents a 32.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 1.42% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on VST. UBS Group boosted their price objective on Vistra from $154.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. Daiwa Capital Markets began coverage on Vistra in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $120.00 price objective for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on Vistra from $203.00 to $186.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, March 28th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on Vistra from $151.00 to $191.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Daiwa America upgraded Vistra to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $166.67.

Vistra Trading Up 3.0%

VST stock opened at $156.55 on Friday. Vistra Corp. has a 1-year low of $66.50 and a 1-year high of $199.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.68, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 0.99. The company has a market capitalization of $53.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.21, a PEG ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 1.16. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $125.42 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $142.12.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, June 18th will be paid a $0.225 dividend. This represents a $0.90 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.57%. This is an increase from Vistra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, June 18th. Vistra’s dividend payout ratio is presently 14.15%.

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.