Vistra (NYSE:VST) CEO James Burke Sells 19,612 Shares of Stock

Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) CEO James Burke sold 19,612 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $188.30, for a total value of $3,692,939.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 292,642 shares in the company, valued at $55,104,488.60. This trade represents a 6.28% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website.

Vistra Trading Up 2.5%

Shares of NYSE:VST opened at $190.44 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $199.36 and a 200 day moving average of $177.73. The company has a market cap of $64.53 billion, a PE ratio of 30.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 1.33. Vistra Corp. has a 12-month low of $90.51 and a 12-month high of $219.82. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.58.

Vistra (NYSE:VST) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The company reported $1.01 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.63 by ($0.62). The firm had revenue of $4.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.15 billion. Vistra had a net margin of 12.90% and a return on equity of 108.41%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Vistra Corp. will post 7 EPS for the current year.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Investors of record on Friday, September 19th were issued a $0.226 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 19th. This represents a $0.90 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. This is an increase from Vistra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. Vistra’s payout ratio is currently 14.35%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Vistra

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in VST. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. boosted its position in shares of Vistra by 7.0% during the 1st quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 79,811 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,373,000 after acquiring an additional 5,204 shares during the last quarter. Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC raised its stake in Vistra by 4.0% during the first quarter. Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC now owns 3,391 shares of the company’s stock valued at $398,000 after purchasing an additional 130 shares in the last quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in Vistra by 55.9% during the first quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 7,588 shares of the company’s stock valued at $891,000 after purchasing an additional 2,721 shares during the last quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. lifted its position in Vistra by 2.6% during the first quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 135,559 shares of the company’s stock valued at $15,920,000 after purchasing an additional 3,412 shares during the last quarter. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Vistra by 128.4% in the 1st quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 8,652 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,016,000 after buying an additional 4,864 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.88% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have commented on VST shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Vistra from $227.00 to $248.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 24th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Vistra in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. TD Cowen started coverage on Vistra in a report on Thursday, October 16th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $250.00 price target on the stock. UBS Group upped their price target on Vistra from $207.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 25th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on shares of Vistra from $229.00 to $236.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, October 3rd. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $229.31.

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.