National Pension Service Sells 6,992 Shares of Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST)

Key Points

• The National Pension Service reduced its holdings in Vistra Corp. by selling 6,992 shares, bringing its total ownership to 619,605 shares, valued at approximately $72.77 million.
• Wall Street analysts have notably increased their price targets for Vistra, with Jefferies raising it to $241.00, and the stock receiving a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy".
• Vistra declared a quarterly dividend increase to $0.226 per share, reflecting a $0.90 annualized dividend yield of 0.4%, with the ex-dividend date set for September 19th.

National Pension Service lessened its holdings in Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST - Free Report) by 1.1% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 619,605 shares of the company's stock after selling 6,992 shares during the quarter. National Pension Service owned 0.18% of Vistra worth $72,766,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its stake in Vistra by 8.0% in the 1st quarter. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 107,216 shares of the company's stock valued at $12,619,000 after purchasing an additional 7,983 shares during the period. Westpac Banking Corp bought a new position in shares of Vistra during the 1st quarter worth $1,285,000. Bulltick Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Vistra during the 1st quarter worth $370,000. Independent Advisor Alliance grew its stake in shares of Vistra by 13.4% during the 1st quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance now owns 66,314 shares of the company's stock worth $7,788,000 after acquiring an additional 7,844 shares during the period. Finally, Nuveen LLC bought a new position in shares of Vistra during the 1st quarter worth $209,149,000. Institutional investors own 90.88% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently weighed in on VST. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on Vistra from $145.00 to $241.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, August 8th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Vistra from $178.00 to $186.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 18th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on Vistra from $179.00 to $203.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday. UBS Group increased their price target on Vistra from $207.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, July 25th. Finally, Raymond James Financial assumed coverage on Vistra in a research note on Friday, June 13th. They issued a "strong-buy" rating and a $216.00 target price for the company. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Vistra has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $192.62.

Vistra Stock Performance

NYSE:VST opened at $202.52 on Friday. The business's 50-day moving average price is $191.43 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $157.13. Vistra Corp. has a twelve month low of $72.90 and a twelve month high of $216.85. The stock has a market cap of $68.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.30, a PEG ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a quick ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.58.

Vistra (NYSE:VST - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.15 billion. As a group, equities analysts predict that Vistra Corp. will post 7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 19th will be issued a $0.226 dividend. This represents a $0.90 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 19th. This is an increase from Vistra's previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. Vistra's payout ratio is 14.35%.

Insider Transactions at Vistra

In other Vistra news, EVP Carrie Lee Kirby sold 108,000 shares of the firm'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 sale, the executive vice president owned 218,239 shares of the company's stock, valued at $34,259,158.22. This trade represents a 33.10% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Stephanie Zapata Moore sold 35,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $161.44, for a total value of $5,650,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 88,073 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,218,505.12. The trade was a 28.44% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 294,000 shares of company stock worth $47,461,490. 1.42% of the stock is owned by 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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