Gunderson Capital Management Inc. Buys New Shares in Vistra Corp. $VST

Key Points

• Gunderson Capital Management Inc. acquired 35,871 shares of Vistra Corp. in Q2, valued at approximately $6.95 million, representing ~2.9% of its investment portfolio.
• Vistra recently increased its quarterly dividend to $0.226 per share, marking a boost from the previous $0.23 and indicating a yield of 0.4%.
• Despite some positive analyst ratings, Vistra's recent earnings were below expectations, reporting $1.01 EPS while analysts expected $1.63, alongside a revenue of $4.25 billion against a $5.15 billion estimate.

Gunderson Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST - Free Report) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 35,871 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,952,000. Vistra comprises about 2.9% of Gunderson Capital Management Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 14th largest position.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of VST. HM Payson & Co. lifted its stake in shares of Vistra by 275.4% in the 1st quarter. HM Payson & Co. now owns 229 shares of the company's stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 168 shares during the last quarter. Banque Transatlantique SA increased its stake in Vistra by 132.0% in the 1st quarter. Banque Transatlantique SA now owns 232 shares of the company's stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 132 shares during the period. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. lifted its position in Vistra by 48.4% in the second quarter. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. now owns 239 shares of the company's stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 78 shares during the last quarter. Keener Financial Planning LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Vistra during the first quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Finally, WPG Advisers LLC bought a new position in shares of Vistra in the first quarter worth approximately $37,000. 90.88% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Vistra Stock Performance

Shares of VST stock opened at $209.99 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $71.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.06 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 Corp. has a one year low of $90.51 and a one year high of $219.82. The company's 50-day moving average is $200.69 and its 200 day moving average is $172.05.

Vistra (NYSE:VST - Get Free Report) last posted its 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). Vistra had a return on equity of 108.41% and a net margin of 12.90%.The business had revenue of $4.25 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.15 billion. Sell-side analysts expect that Vistra Corp. will post 7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed 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 represents a $0.90 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.4%. This is a boost from Vistra's previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 19th. Vistra's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 14.35%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Daiwa Capital Markets raised shares of Vistra from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $250.00 price target on the stock in a report on Wednesday, September 17th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Vistra in a research report on Wednesday. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on Vistra from $179.00 to $203.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Vistra from $227.00 to $248.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, September 24th. Finally, Daiwa America raised shares of Vistra from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 17th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Vistra currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $227.85.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Vistra news, CEO James A. Burke sold 43,074 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $208.75, for a total transaction of $8,991,697.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 217,025 shares in the company, valued at $45,303,968.75. The trade was a 16.56% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders sold a total of 422,389 shares of company stock valued at $86,992,610 over the last 90 days. 1.42% of the stock is currently owned by corporate 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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