9,251 Shares in Vistra Corp. $VST Bought by Ieq Capital LLC

Key Points

• Ieq Capital LLC has acquired a new stake of approximately $1.09 million in Vistra Corp, purchasing 9,251 shares, as revealed in their recent SEC filing.
• Vistra Corp. has announced a quarterly dividend of $0.226 per share, an increase from the previous $0.23, set to be paid on September 30th.
• Despite the positive dividend news, Vistra recently reported a miss on earnings, with an EPS of $1.01, falling short of analyst expectations of $1.63.

Ieq Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 9,251 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,086,000.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. HM Payson & Co. grew its position in shares of Vistra by 275.4% in the 1st quarter. HM Payson & Co. now owns 229 shares of the company's stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 168 shares in the last quarter. Ameriflex Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Vistra in the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Keener Financial Planning LLC acquired a new position in shares of Vistra in the 1st quarter worth approximately $34,000. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT acquired a new position in shares of Vistra in the 1st quarter worth approximately $39,000. Finally, Opal Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Vistra in the 1st quarter worth approximately $46,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.88% of the company's stock.

Vistra Stock Performance

Vistra stock traded up $1.85 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $189.97. 2,769,407 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,904,480. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $195.59 and a 200 day moving average price of $159.63. The company has a quick ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.58. The company has a market cap of $64.36 billion, a PE ratio of 30.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.18 and a beta of 1.33. Vistra Corp. has a one year low of $72.90 and a one year high of $216.85.

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

Vistra Increases Dividend

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

VST has been the subject of several research reports. UBS Group lifted their target price on Vistra from $207.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, July 25th. Morgan Stanley set a $207.00 price target on Vistra and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, August 21st. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on Vistra from $145.00 to $241.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, August 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on Vistra from $179.00 to $203.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 13th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on Vistra from $191.00 to $229.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 12th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $201.43.

Insider Activity at Vistra

In other news, Director John R. Sult sold 25,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, June 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $171.67, for a total value of $4,291,750.00. Following the sale, the director owned 75,946 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $13,037,649.82. The trade was a 24.77% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 1.42% of the company's stock.

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.