Applied Finance Capital Management LLC Makes New Investment in Vistra Corp. $VST

Key Points

• Applied Finance Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Vistra Corp. by purchasing 5,709 shares valued at approximately $1,106,000 in the second quarter.
• CEO James A. Burke sold 21,370 shares at an average price of $205.58, leading to a 7.15% decrease in his ownership of the stock.
• Vistra recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.226 per share, marking an increase from the prior dividend of $0.23, and reflecting a 0.4% yield.

Applied Finance Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST - Free Report) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 5,709 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,106,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in shares of Vistra by 0.3% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 4,190,462 shares of the company's stock worth $492,102,000 after buying an additional 11,386 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp raised its holdings in shares of Vistra by 1.9% in the first quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 3,083,842 shares of the company's stock worth $362,166,000 after buying an additional 57,358 shares during the last quarter. Nuveen LLC purchased a new position in shares of Vistra in the first quarter worth $209,149,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its holdings in shares of Vistra by 8.7% in the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 1,470,680 shares of the company's stock worth $172,717,000 after buying an additional 118,230 shares during the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Vistra by 1.5% in the first quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,327,653 shares of the company's stock worth $155,920,000 after buying an additional 19,679 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.88% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO James A. Burke sold 21,370 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $205.58, for a total transaction of $4,393,244.60. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 277,315 shares in the company, valued at approximately $57,010,417.70. This trade represents a 7.15% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders have sold a total of 547,510 shares of company stock worth $112,585,800 in the last quarter. 1.42% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have issued reports on VST. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Vistra from $207.00 to $223.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, September 25th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Vistra from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Friday, September 5th. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a "hold" rating and set a $230.00 target price (down previously from $241.00) on shares of Vistra in a report on Monday, September 22nd. Melius initiated coverage on shares of Vistra in a report on Wednesday, August 20th. They set a "buy" rating and a $295.00 target price for the company. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on shares of Vistra from $179.00 to $203.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 13th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $229.31.

Vistra Stock Down 0.3%

VST stock opened at $210.20 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $71.22 billion, a PE ratio of 33.52, a P/E/G ratio of 2.99 and a beta of 1.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.58, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 0.90. The firm's fifty day moving average is $200.60 and its 200 day moving average is $174.96. Vistra Corp. has a one year low of $90.51 and a one year high of $219.82.

Vistra (NYSE:VST - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The company reported $1.01 EPS 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 analyst estimates of $5.15 billion. Vistra had a net margin of 12.90% and a return on equity of 108.41%. On average, research analysts forecast that Vistra Corp. will post 7 EPS for the current year.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Investors of record on Friday, September 19th were given a dividend of $0.226 per share. This is a boost from Vistra's previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. This represents a $0.90 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 19th. Vistra's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 14.35%.

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.

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