First Trust Advisors LP Sells 126,394 Shares of Vistra Corp. $VST

Key Points

• First Trust Advisors LP cut its stake in Vistra by 18.5% in Q3, selling 126,394 shares and ending the quarter with 557,756 shares (about 0.16% of the company) valued at $109.28 million.
• Vistra missed quarterly expectations with EPS of $2.18 vs. $2.45 consensus and revenue of $4.58B vs. $5.75B, and announced a raised quarterly dividend of $0.228 (annualized $0.91, 0.6% yield) payable March 31.
• CEO James A. Burke sold 22,251 shares (reducing his ownership by 6.95%), while analysts remain largely positive—consensus rating Buy with an average price target of $236.40.

First Trust Advisors LP lowered its holdings in Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST - Free Report) by 18.5% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 557,756 shares of the company's stock after selling 126,394 shares during the quarter. First Trust Advisors LP owned 0.16% of Vistra worth $109,276,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in VST. Bridgewater Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in Vistra by 3.1% during the third quarter. Bridgewater Advisors Inc. now owns 1,787 shares of the company's stock worth $350,000 after purchasing an additional 53 shares during the period. Y.D. More Investments Ltd grew its stake in shares of Vistra by 7.1% in the 3rd quarter. Y.D. More Investments Ltd now owns 916 shares of the company's stock valued at $168,000 after purchasing an additional 61 shares during the period. Ballentine Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Vistra by 2.0% in the 3rd quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 3,275 shares of the company's stock valued at $642,000 after purchasing an additional 63 shares during the period. Wealth Effects LLC raised its holdings in shares of Vistra by 1.1% in the 3rd quarter. Wealth Effects LLC now owns 5,782 shares of the company's stock worth $1,133,000 after buying an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Guardian Asset Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Vistra by 3.0% during the 3rd quarter. Guardian Asset Advisors LLC now owns 2,281 shares of the company's stock worth $447,000 after buying an additional 66 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.88% of the company's stock.

Vistra Price Performance

VST opened at $158.76 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.01, a current ratio of 0.78 and a quick ratio of 0.69. The stock has a market capitalization of $53.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 73.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 1.42. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $163.60 and its 200-day simple moving average is $179.31. 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 posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 26th. The company reported $2.18 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.45 by ($0.27). The company had revenue of $4.58 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.75 billion. Vistra had a return on equity of 81.09% and a net margin of 5.32%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Vistra Corp. will post 7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 20th will be paid a dividend of $0.228 per share. This represents a $0.91 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.6%. This is a boost from Vistra's previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 20th. Vistra's payout ratio is currently 41.94%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO James A. Burke sold 22,251 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $162.05, for a total value of $3,605,774.55. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 297,998 shares in the company, valued at $48,290,575.90. This trade represents a 6.95% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 1.42% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently commented on VST. Morgan Stanley restated an "overweight" rating and set a $215.00 target price on shares of Vistra in a research report on Friday, February 20th. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded Vistra from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $205.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on Vistra from $249.00 to $233.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, December 16th. Scotiabank boosted their target price on shares of Vistra from $287.00 to $293.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, January 12th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $241.00 target price on shares of Vistra in a report on Monday, March 2nd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $236.40.

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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