Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund Makes New Investment in Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST)

Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund purchased a new position in shares of Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 9,866 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,159,000.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Tucker Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in Vistra in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Cherry Tree Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Vistra by 2,030.0% during the 4th quarter. Cherry Tree Wealth Management LLC now owns 213 shares of the company's stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 203 shares in the last quarter. Ameriflex Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Vistra in the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Vistra in the fourth quarter valued at $39,000. Finally, Whittier Trust Co. raised its position in Vistra by 1,611.8% in the 4th quarter. Whittier Trust Co. now owns 291 shares of the company's stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 274 shares during the last quarter. 90.88% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have commented on VST shares. Daiwa America raised shares of Vistra to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Vistra from $160.00 to $207.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 17th. Bank of America upgraded Vistra from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $164.00 to $152.00 in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Raymond James Financial initiated coverage on shares of Vistra in a research report on Friday, June 13th. They set a "strong-buy" rating and a $216.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Daiwa Capital Markets began coverage on shares of Vistra in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $120.00 price target for the company. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Vistra presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $176.92.

Vistra Stock Performance

Shares of VST stock traded down $0.36 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $186.19. 6,834,449 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 7,236,989. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.53. Vistra Corp. has a 52-week low of $66.50 and a 52-week high of $199.84. The stock has a market capitalization of $63.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.28, a P/E/G ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 1.22. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $152.73 and a 200 day simple moving average of $146.50.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, June 18th will be issued a $0.225 dividend. This is a boost from Vistra's previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. This represents a $0.90 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.48%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, June 18th. Vistra's dividend payout ratio is presently 14.15%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Vistra

In other news, EVP Carrie Lee Kirby sold 108,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $156.98, for a total value of $16,953,840.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 218,239 shares of the company's stock, valued at $34,259,158.22. This represents a 33.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Stephanie Zapata Moore sold 35,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $161.44, for a total transaction of $5,650,400.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 88,073 shares of the company's stock, valued at $14,218,505.12. This trade represents a 28.44% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 294,000 shares of company stock worth $47,461,490 over the last three months. Company 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.