Denali Advisors LLC Boosts Position in Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST)

Denali Advisors LLC raised its position in Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) by 52.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 49,522 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 17,025 shares during the quarter. Denali Advisors LLC’s holdings in Vistra were worth $6,828,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its stake in shares of Vistra by 51.1% in the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 3,826,631 shares of the company’s stock worth $453,609,000 after purchasing an additional 1,293,974 shares during the period. State Street Corp boosted its stake in shares of Vistra by 6.8% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 16,355,255 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,938,752,000 after acquiring an additional 1,037,402 shares during the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC boosted its stake in shares of Vistra by 36.0% during the 3rd quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 3,781,908 shares of the company’s stock worth $448,320,000 after acquiring an additional 1,000,307 shares during the last quarter. Rubric Capital Management LP grew its position in shares of Vistra by 60.1% during the 3rd quarter. Rubric Capital Management LP now owns 2,125,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $251,898,000 after acquiring an additional 797,894 shares during the period. Finally, Castle Hook Partners LP increased its stake in shares of Vistra by 33.5% in the 3rd quarter. Castle Hook Partners LP now owns 2,610,273 shares of the company’s stock worth $309,422,000 after purchasing an additional 654,568 shares in the last quarter. 90.88% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Scott B. Helm sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $139.77, for a total transaction of $2,795,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 343,350 shares in the company, valued at approximately $47,990,029.50. This represents a 5.50 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 1.42% of the company’s stock.

Vistra Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:VST opened at $137.86 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $46.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.72, a P/E/G ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 1.22. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $160.10 and a 200 day moving average price of $133.60. Vistra Corp. has a fifty-two week low of $48.22 and a fifty-two week high of $199.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.68, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a current ratio of 1.11.

Vistra declared that its board has approved a stock buyback plan on Thursday, November 7th that allows the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to reacquire up to 2.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 20th will be issued a dividend of $0.2235 per share. This represents a $0.89 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.65%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 20th. This is an increase from Vistra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. Vistra’s dividend payout ratio is 16.42%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently weighed in on VST. Bank of America started coverage on Vistra in a research report on Monday, January 27th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $206.00 target price on the stock. Evercore ISI started coverage on Vistra in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. They set an “outperform” rating and a $202.00 price objective on the stock. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Vistra from $135.00 to $169.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, November 22nd. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on shares of Vistra from $151.00 to $191.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Vistra from $161.00 to $174.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Vistra has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $171.64.

About Vistra

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.