Centaurus Financial Inc. Takes Position in Vistra Corp. $VST

Key Points

• Centaurus Financial initiated a position in Vistra during the second quarter, buying 13,176 shares valued at approximately $2.09 million. Institutional investors collectively own 90.88% of Vistra’s stock.
• Analysts remain broadly positive, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $223.53, despite Vistra’s recent quarterly earnings and revenue falling short of expectations.
• Vistra shares opened at $139.90, well below their 52-week high of $219.82. The company maintained its quarterly dividend at $0.23 per share, equivalent to a 0.7% annualized yield.

Centaurus Financial Inc. purchased a new position in Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST - Free Report) during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 13,176 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,090,000.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Fideuram Intesa Sanpaolo Private Banking S.P.A. bought a new stake in shares of Vistra during the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Mcguire Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Vistra during the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Kemnay Advisory Services Inc. bought a new position in shares of Vistra in the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Triumph Capital Management bought a new position in shares of Vistra in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $38,000. Finally, Strive Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Vistra in the third quarter worth approximately $38,000. Institutional investors own 90.88% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director John R. Sult sold 6,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $170.00, for a total value of $1,105,000.00. Following the sale, the director owned 70,714 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $12,021,380. This represents a 8.42% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Paul M. Barbas sold 244 shares of Vistra stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $153.00, for a total transaction of $37,332.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 53,006 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,109,918. This represents a 0.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 36,588 shares of company stock worth $5,914,427. 0.92% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on VST. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $212.00 price target on shares of Vistra in a research note on Monday, August 10th. Seaport Research Partners reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $230.00 target price on shares of Vistra in a research report on Monday, June 15th. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $206.00 price target on Vistra in a report on Wednesday, August 12th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Vistra from $212.00 to $227.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, August 21st. Finally, TD Cowen reduced their target price on shares of Vistra from $222.00 to $221.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, August 19th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have given a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Vistra has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $223.53.

Vistra Trading Down 0.1%

VST stock opened at $139.90 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $152.15 and a 200 day moving average price of $155.61. Vistra Corp. has a fifty-two week low of $132.66 and a fifty-two week high of $219.82. The firm has a market cap of $46.96 billion, a PE ratio of 23.63 and a beta of 1.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.87, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a current ratio of 0.97.

Vistra (NYSE:VST - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Friday, August 7th. The company reported $0.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.61 by ($0.85). Vistra had a net margin of 11.55% and a return on equity of 108.68%. The business had revenue of $4.02 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.46 billion. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Vistra Corp. will post 9.21 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 21st will be given a dividend of $0.23 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 21st. This represents a $0.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.7%. This is an increase from Vistra's previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. Vistra's dividend payout ratio is presently 15.54%.

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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