Eventide Asset Management LLC Lowers Stake in Vistra Corp. $VST

Key Points

• Eventide Asset Management LLC has reduced its stake in Vistra Corp. by 25.6%, selling 158,005 shares, which now represent about 1.1% of its total holdings.
• Vistra announced a quarterly dividend increase to $0.226 per share, with a payout ratio of 14.35% and a dividend yield of 0.5%.
• Research analysts have set new price targets for Vistra, with BMO Capital Markets increasing its target from $191 to $229, suggesting a positive outlook for the stock.

Eventide Asset Management LLC trimmed its stake in Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST - Free Report) by 25.6% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 460,058 shares of the company's stock after selling 158,005 shares during the period. Vistra accounts for about 1.1% of Eventide Asset Management LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 27th biggest holding. Eventide Asset Management LLC owned about 0.14% of Vistra worth $54,051,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in shares of Vistra by 0.3% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 4,190,462 shares of the company's stock worth $492,102,000 after acquiring an additional 11,386 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp increased its stake in shares of Vistra by 1.9% in the 1st quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 3,083,842 shares of the company's stock worth $362,166,000 after acquiring an additional 57,358 shares in the last quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Vistra by 5.1% in the 4th quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 2,206,046 shares of the company's stock worth $304,148,000 after acquiring an additional 106,803 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC bought a new position in shares of Vistra in the 1st quarter worth about $209,149,000. Finally, Nuveen Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Vistra by 10.3% in the 4th quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC now owns 1,769,749 shares of the company's stock worth $243,995,000 after acquiring an additional 165,396 shares in the last quarter. 90.88% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Vistra Stock Performance

Shares of VST stock traded down $2.00 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $187.73. The company had a trading volume of 5,198,097 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,346,336. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $195.43 and a 200-day moving average price of $159.84. Vistra Corp. has a one year low of $72.90 and a one year high of $216.85. The firm has a market cap of $63.61 billion, a PE ratio of 29.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.94 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.

Vistra (NYSE:VST - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The company reported $1.01 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.63 by ($0.62). The company had revenue of $4.25 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.15 billion. Vistra had a return on equity of 108.41% and a net margin of 12.90%. Sell-side analysts predict that Vistra Corp. will post 7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Investors of record on Friday, September 19th will be issued a $0.226 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 19th. This is a positive change from Vistra's previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. This represents a $0.90 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.5%. Vistra's payout ratio is 14.35%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently issued reports on VST shares. Evercore ISI set a $192.00 price target on shares of Vistra and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 15th. Morgan Stanley set a $207.00 price objective on shares of Vistra and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 21st. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Vistra from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Friday. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on shares of Vistra from $145.00 to $241.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, August 8th. Finally, Raymond James Financial started coverage on shares of Vistra in a research note on Friday, June 13th. They set a "strong-buy" rating and a $216.00 price objective for the company. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Vistra currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $201.43.

About Vistra

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.