10,000 Shares in Vistra Corp. $VST Bought by K2 Principal Fund L.P.

Key Points

• K2 Principal Fund L.P. opened a new position in Vistra Corp., buying 10,000 shares worth about $1.61 million in the fourth quarter.
• Institutional ownership remains very high, with hedge funds and other institutions holding 90.88% of Vistra’s stock. Several firms also increased stakes recently, including Norges Bank and Legal & General Group Plc.
• Vistra reported strong quarterly results, beating earnings and revenue estimates, and it also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.229 per share. Analysts remain broadly positive, with an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $233.33.

K2 Principal Fund L.P. bought a new position in shares of Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 10,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,613,000.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Vistra during the fourth quarter valued at $746,729,000. Payden & Rygel grew its position in Vistra by 3,118.2% during the fourth quarter. Payden & Rygel now owns 35,400 shares of the company's stock valued at $5,711,000 after buying an additional 34,300 shares during the period. Signature Estate & Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Vistra during the fourth quarter valued at $29,875,000. Intech Investment Management LLC grew its position in Vistra by 34.4% during the fourth quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 188,921 shares of the company's stock valued at $30,479,000 after buying an additional 48,378 shares during the period. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc grew its position in Vistra by 12.2% during the fourth quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 1,768,694 shares of the company's stock valued at $285,343,000 after buying an additional 192,274 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.88% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently commented on VST. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of Vistra from $236.00 to $234.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 27th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Vistra from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Raymond James Financial set a $208.00 price target on shares of Vistra in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $190.00 target price on shares of Vistra in a research report on Thursday, May 21st. Finally, Morgan Stanley reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $212.00 target price on shares of Vistra in a research report on Thursday, May 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $233.33.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CAO Margaret Montemayor sold 5,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $164.96, for a total transaction of $824,800.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 14,360 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,368,825.60. The trade was a 25.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.92% of the company's stock.

Vistra Stock Up 1.1%

Shares of NYSE VST opened at $148.01 on Friday. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $153.53 and its 200-day simple moving average is $160.20. Vistra Corp. has a 52-week low of $132.66 and a 52-week high of $219.82. The firm has a market cap of $49.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.79 and a beta of 1.40. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.51.

Vistra (NYSE:VST - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $2.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.32 by $1.55. The business had revenue of $5.64 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.22 billion. Vistra had a net margin of 11.52% and a return on equity of 105.64%. Equities analysts predict that Vistra Corp. will post 9.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Investors of record on Monday, June 22nd will be given a dividend of $0.229 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 22nd. This is a boost from Vistra's previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.6%. Vistra's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 15.24%.

Vistra Company Profile

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.

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