Vistra Corp. $VST Position Raised by Panagora Asset Management Inc.

Key Points

• Panagora Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in Vistra Corp. by 30.8%, acquiring an additional 16,490 shares, bringing their total to 70,094 shares worth $8,232,000 as of the most recent SEC filing.
• Vistra Corp. reported a quarterly EPS of $1.01, missing analyst expectations of $1.63, with revenue of $4.25 billion against forecasts of $5.15 billion.
• The company also announced an increase in its quarterly dividend to $0.226 per share, representing a dividend yield of 0.5% and a payout ratio of 14.35%.

Panagora Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST - Free Report) by 30.8% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 70,094 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 16,490 shares during the period. Panagora Asset Management Inc.'s holdings in Vistra were worth $8,232,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in Vistra by 0.3% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 4,190,462 shares of the company's stock valued at $492,102,000 after buying an additional 11,386 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp raised its holdings in Vistra by 1.9% in the first quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 3,083,842 shares of the company's stock valued at $362,166,000 after buying an additional 57,358 shares during the period. Castle Hook Partners LP grew its position in Vistra by 13.6% in the fourth quarter. Castle Hook Partners LP now owns 2,964,222 shares of the company's stock valued at $408,677,000 after acquiring an additional 353,949 shares in the last quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. grew its position in Vistra by 5.1% in the fourth quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 2,206,046 shares of the company's stock valued at $304,148,000 after acquiring an additional 106,803 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nuveen LLC acquired a new stake in Vistra in the first quarter valued at approximately $209,149,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.88% of the company's stock.

Vistra Stock Performance

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

Vistra (NYSE:VST - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 7th. The company reported $1.01 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.63 by ($0.62). The business had revenue of $4.25 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.15 billion. Vistra had a return on equity of 108.41% and a net margin of 12.90%. Sell-side analysts predict that Vistra Corp. will post 7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed 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 is a boost from Vistra's previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. This represents a $0.90 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 19th. Vistra's dividend payout ratio is presently 14.35%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have issued reports on VST shares. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Vistra from $207.00 to $230.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, July 25th. Raymond James Financial started coverage on shares of Vistra in a research report on Friday, June 13th. They issued a "strong-buy" rating and a $216.00 price objective for the company. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on shares of Vistra from $179.00 to $203.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 13th. Melius started coverage on shares of Vistra in a research report on Wednesday, August 20th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $295.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Melius Research raised shares of Vistra to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 20th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $201.43.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Vistra news, Director John R. Sult sold 25,000 shares of Vistra stock in a transaction on Friday, June 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $171.67, for a total value of $4,291,750.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 75,946 shares of the company's stock, valued at $13,037,649.82. The trade was a 24.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. 1.42% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Vistra 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.