118,521 Shares of Vistra Corp. $VST Purchased by Aware Super Pty Ltd as trustee of Aware Super

Key Points

• Aware Super established a new Vistra position, buying 118,521 shares worth approximately $16.4 million in the third quarter.
• Vistra’s latest quarterly results fell short of expectations: EPS was $0.76 versus a $1.61 consensus, while revenue was $4.02 billion versus an expected $5.46 billion.
• Vistra raised its quarterly dividend slightly to $0.231 per share, equivalent to about $0.92 annually and a 0.7% yield; analysts’ consensus rating was “Moderate Buy,” with an average price target of $202.43.

Aware Super Pty Ltd as trustee of Aware Super bought a new position in Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST - Free Report) in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 118,521 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $16,397,000.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in Vistra during the 2nd quarter valued at about $4,610,496,000. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Vistra by 16.1% during the 2nd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 258,337 shares of the company's stock valued at $40,979,000 after buying an additional 35,862 shares during the period. Fifth Third Bancorp increased its position in shares of Vistra by 95.1% during the 1st quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 177,199 shares of the company's stock valued at $26,638,000 after purchasing an additional 86,393 shares during the last quarter. Wealth High Governance Capital Ltda purchased a new stake in Vistra during the first quarter valued at approximately $10,543,000. Finally, Lazard Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in Vistra by 353.5% in the 1st quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 11,690 shares of the company's stock worth $1,757,000 after purchasing an additional 9,112 shares during the period. 90.88% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Vistra

In related news, EVP Scott Hudson sold 44,444 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $151.82, for a total transaction of $6,747,488.08. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 331,137 shares in the company, valued at $50,273,219.34. The trade was a 11.83% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO James A. Burke bought 4,465 shares of Vistra stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 1st. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $135.25 per share, for a total transaction of $603,891.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 1,146,352 shares in the company, valued at $155,044,108. This represents a 0.39% increase in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.92% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Vistra Trading Up 3.8%

Shares of NYSE:VST opened at $139.66 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $46.88 billion, a PE ratio of 23.59 and a beta of 1.37. The company has a current ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.87. Vistra Corp. has a 12-month low of $132.66 and a 12-month high of $196.80. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $145.11 and its 200-day simple moving average is $153.38.

Vistra (NYSE:VST - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, August 7th. The company reported $0.76 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.61 by ($0.85). The company had revenue of $4.02 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.46 billion. Vistra had a net margin of 11.55% and a return on equity of 108.68%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Vistra Corp. will post 9.19 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 22nd will be given a $0.2310 dividend. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 22nd. This is a positive change from Vistra's previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. Vistra's payout ratio is 15.54%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have weighed in on VST. UBS Group set a $176.00 price target on shares of Vistra in a research report on Wednesday, October 21st. Lake Street Capital set a $194.00 target price on Vistra in a research report on Tuesday, October 27th. Williams Trading set a $202.00 price objective on Vistra in a research note on Friday, October 2nd. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce reduced their target price on shares of Vistra from $201.00 to $181.00 and set an "outperformer" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 28th. Finally, Scotiabank reduced their target price on Vistra from $207.00 to $189.00 and set a "sector outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 28th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have issued a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $202.43.

Vistra Company Profile

Vistra Corp. NYSE: VST is an integrated energy company based in Irving, Texas. The company operates across electricity generation, power distribution support, energy marketing and retail electricity sales, serving residential, commercial and industrial customers primarily in the United States.

Vistra owns and operates a diverse portfolio of power generation and energy storage facilities. Its assets include natural gas, nuclear, coal and renewable generation, as well as battery storage projects.

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