Blue Trust Inc. Increases Holdings in Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST)

Blue Trust Inc. grew its holdings in Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) by 29.9% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 11,758 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,704 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc.’s holdings in Vistra were worth $1,621,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Avior Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in Vistra by 56.5% in the fourth quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC now owns 180 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 65 shares during the period. Founders Capital Management bought a new position in Vistra in the 4th quarter worth $28,000. West Branch Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Vistra in the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Vistra during the 3rd quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, Mark Sheptoff Financial Planning LLC purchased a new position in shares of Vistra during the third quarter valued at about $30,000. 90.88% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Vistra Stock Down 28.3 %

Shares of Vistra stock opened at $136.96 on Tuesday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $156.00 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $120.79. The stock has a market capitalization of $46.60 billion, a PE ratio of 25.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.77 and a beta of 1.21. Vistra Corp. has a 52-week low of $40.54 and a 52-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 (NYSE:VST) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The company reported $5.25 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.24 by $4.01. Vistra had a net margin of 12.51% and a return on equity of 57.63%. The company had revenue of $6.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.96 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.25 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Vistra Corp. will post 4.48 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 20th were issued a dividend of $0.221 per share. This is an increase from Vistra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.65%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 20th. Vistra’s dividend payout ratio is presently 16.60%.

Vistra declared that its board has initiated a share repurchase program on Thursday, November 7th that allows the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to buy up to 2.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

VST has been the topic of several research reports. BNP Paribas started coverage on Vistra in a research report on Monday, October 14th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $231.00 price objective on the stock. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on Vistra from $151.00 to $191.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. UBS Group raised their price objective on Vistra from $161.00 to $174.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on shares of Vistra from $105.00 to $141.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. Finally, Evercore ISI initiated coverage on shares of Vistra in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $202.00 price target for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Vistra presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $171.64.

Insider Activity at Vistra

In other news, EVP Scott A. Hudson sold 115,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $164.16, for a total value of $18,878,400.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 254,932 shares in the company, valued at $41,849,637.12. This trade represents a 31.09 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Stephen J. Muscato sold 207,100 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $161.34, for a total value of $33,413,514.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 318,287 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $51,352,424.58. This trade represents a 39.42 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 342,100 shares of company stock valued at $55,087,314 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 1.42% of the company’s stock.

Vistra 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.