Bridgewater Advisors Inc. Makes New Investment in Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST)

Bridgewater Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 1,667 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $216,000.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Paloma Partners Management Co grew its position in shares of Vistra by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Paloma Partners Management Co now owns 8,000 shares of the company's stock worth $1,103,000 after buying an additional 81 shares during the last quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. increased its stake in Vistra by 1.6% during the 4th quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 6,409 shares of the company's stock worth $898,000 after buying an additional 98 shares in the last quarter. IHT Wealth Management LLC raised its position in Vistra by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. IHT Wealth Management LLC now owns 9,579 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,321,000 after purchasing an additional 106 shares during the period. EP Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Vistra by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 7,980 shares of the company's stock worth $1,100,000 after buying an additional 125 shares during the period. Finally, Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Vistra by 4.0% during the 1st quarter. Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC now owns 3,391 shares of the company's stock worth $398,000 after purchasing an additional 130 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.88% of the company's stock.

Vistra Stock Down 1.1%

Shares of NYSE:VST opened at $182.17 on Friday. The business has a fifty day moving average of $174.33 and a two-hundred day moving average of $152.21. Vistra Corp. has a 52-week low of $66.50 and a 52-week high of $200.25. The stock has a market cap of $61.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.64, a PEG ratio of 2.17 and a beta of 1.26. The company has a quick ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.53.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 30th. Investors of record on Wednesday, June 18th were paid a $0.225 dividend. This is a positive change from Vistra's previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. This represents a $0.90 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.49%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, June 18th. Vistra's dividend payout ratio is presently 14.15%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently commented on VST. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Vistra from $178.00 to $186.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 18th. Raymond James Financial started coverage on Vistra in a research report on Friday, June 13th. They set a "strong-buy" rating and a $216.00 price target on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on Vistra from $134.00 to $164.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, May 23rd. UBS Group increased their price target on Vistra from $160.00 to $207.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 17th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on Vistra from $203.00 to $186.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, March 28th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $176.92.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Vistra news, Director John R. Sult sold 25,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, June 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $171.67, for a total transaction of $4,291,750.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 75,946 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $13,037,649.82. This trade represents a 24.77% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Scott A. Hudson sold 56,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $157.00, for a total value of $8,792,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 306,600 shares in the company, valued at approximately $48,136,200. This trade represents a 15.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 294,000 shares of company stock valued at $47,461,490. 1.42% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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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