Peregrine Asset Advisers Inc. Grows Position in Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST)

Peregrine Asset Advisers Inc. raised its position in shares of Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST - Free Report) by 564.8% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 13,721 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 11,657 shares during the period. Peregrine Asset Advisers Inc.'s holdings in Vistra were worth $1,611,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in Vistra by 2.6% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,539,243 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,174,326,000 after buying an additional 219,055 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its position in Vistra by 63.6% in the 4th quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 6,260,363 shares of the company's stock valued at $863,116,000 after acquiring an additional 2,433,732 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp lifted its position in Vistra by 10.9% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 3,026,484 shares of the company's stock valued at $417,261,000 after acquiring an additional 296,714 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in Vistra in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $409,087,000. Finally, Castle Hook Partners LP lifted its position in Vistra by 13.6% in the 4th 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. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.88% of the company's stock.

Vistra Stock Up 0.4%

Shares of VST traded up $0.76 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $188.99. The stock had a trading volume of 4,153,291 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,095,742. Vistra Corp. has a 1-year low of $66.50 and a 1-year high of $201.65. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $175.48 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $152.72. The company has a market cap of $64.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.72, a PEG ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 1.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.53, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.77.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 30th. Investors of record on Wednesday, June 18th were paid a dividend of $0.225 per share. This is a positive change from Vistra's previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. This represents a $0.90 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.48%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, June 18th. Vistra's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 14.15%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on VST shares. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on Vistra from $134.00 to $164.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, May 23rd. Evercore ISI set a $192.00 price objective on Vistra and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 15th. Raymond James Financial began coverage on Vistra in a research note on Friday, June 13th. They issued a "strong-buy" rating and a $216.00 price objective for the company. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on Vistra from $178.00 to $186.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 18th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on Vistra from $203.00 to $186.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, March 28th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Vistra has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $176.92.

Insider Activity at Vistra

In other news, EVP Carrie Lee Kirby sold 108,000 shares of Vistra stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 19th. The shares were 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. The trade was a 33.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Stephanie Zapata Moore sold 35,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $161.44, for a total transaction of $5,650,400.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 88,073 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,218,505.12. This 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 in 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.