The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Reduces Holdings in Vistra Corp. $VST

Key Points

• The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company cut its Vistra stake by 16% in the second quarter, selling 31,741 shares and retaining 167,100 shares valued at approximately $26.5 million. Institutional investors collectively own 90.88% of Vistra.
• Wall Street remains broadly bullish, with one Strong Buy, 14 Buy and two Hold ratings. Vistra has a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $223.53, well above its recent trading price near $148.
• Vistra reported quarterly EPS of $0.76, missing the $1.61 consensus estimate, while revenue of $4.02 billion also fell short of expectations. The company maintained its $0.23 quarterly dividend, equal to a 0.6% yield, amid substantial leverage and recent insider selling.

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company reduced its stake in Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST - Free Report) by 16.0% during the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 167,100 shares of the company's stock after selling 31,741 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company's holdings in Vistra were worth $26,507,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of VST. Fideuram Intesa Sanpaolo Private Banking S.P.A. purchased a new stake in shares of Vistra during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Mcguire Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Vistra in the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Kemnay Advisory Services Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Vistra in the fourth quarter worth $30,000. Strive Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in Vistra during the 4th quarter valued at $33,000. Finally, IFC & Insurance Marketing Inc. bought a new stake in Vistra during the 4th quarter valued at $35,000. Institutional investors own 90.88% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Scotiabank increased their price target on shares of Vistra from $293.00 to $298.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $206.00 price objective on shares of Vistra in a research note on Wednesday, August 12th. Seaport Research Partners reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $230.00 target price on shares of Vistra in a report on Monday, June 15th. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $190.00 target price on shares of Vistra in a report on Thursday, May 21st. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein set a $187.00 target price on Vistra and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 16th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $223.53.

Vistra Trading Up 0.7%

NYSE:VST opened at $148.12 on Friday. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $148.81 and a 200-day moving average price of $154.04. The stock has a market cap of $49.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.02 and a beta of 1.40. The company has a current ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.87. Vistra Corp. has a 12 month low of $132.66 and a 12 month high of $219.82.

Vistra (NYSE:VST - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, August 7th. The company reported $0.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.61 by ($0.85). Vistra had a net margin of 11.55% and a return on equity of 108.68%. The company had revenue of $4.02 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.46 billion. Equities analysts predict that Vistra Corp. will post 9.21 EPS for the current year.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 21st will be given a dividend of $0.23 per share. This represents a $0.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 21st. This is a positive change from Vistra's previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. Vistra's payout ratio is presently 15.54%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Scott Hudson sold 44,444 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $151.82, for a total value of $6,747,488.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 331,137 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $50,273,219.34. This represents a 11.83% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director John Sult sold 6,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $170.00, for a total value of $1,105,000.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 70,714 shares of the company's stock, valued at $12,021,380. This represents a 8.42% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last three months, insiders have sold 76,188 shares of company stock worth $11,889,820. Company insiders own 0.92% of the company's stock.

Key Stories Impacting Vistra

Here are the key news stories impacting Vistra this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Vistra priced $850 million of Series A and $650 million of Series B junior subordinated notes due 2057. Proceeds will support general corporate purposes and could be used to redeem outstanding preferred stock, potentially improving the capital structure. Vistra Prices Registered Offering of $1.5 Billion of Junior Subordinated Notes
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts remain optimistic about Vistra’s growth prospects. Hedging, long-term power contracts, its diversified generation portfolio and rising electricity demand from data centers, industrial activity and electrification support earnings visibility. The Cogentrix acquisition and long-term nuclear agreements with Meta and Amazon Web Services are additional potential catalysts. Vistra: Cogentrix and Meta Can Offset a Softer ERCOT Outlook
• Positive Sentiment: Wall Street’s consensus view remains favorable, with a Moderate Buy rating and price targets generally well above the recent trading range. Commentators cite improving EBITDA expectations and potential upside to management’s outlook. Vistra Receives Consensus Recommendation of Moderate Buy
• Neutral Sentiment: Executive Vice President Scott Hudson sold 44,444 shares worth approximately $6.75 million. Because the transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan, it is a limited signal of management’s current outlook. SEC Insider Transaction Filing
• Negative Sentiment: The notes increase Vistra’s financing obligations while the company already has substantial leverage, reflected in a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.87. Investors may also be concerned about softer ERCOT conditions and the additional leverage associated with the Cogentrix acquisition. VST Stock Outperforms Industry in the Past Three Months

Vistra Profile

Vistra Corp. is an integrated energy company headquartered in Irving, Texas. The company operates electricity generation and retail energy businesses, serving residential, commercial, industrial and wholesale customers primarily across the United States.

Vistra's generation portfolio includes natural gas, nuclear, coal, solar and battery energy storage facilities. Through its retail operations, the company provides electricity, natural gas and renewable energy plans under brands that include TXU Energy, Dynegy, Homefield Energy and Ambit Energy.

The company was established in 2016 following the separation of Energy Future Holdings' competitive energy businesses.

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