Townsquare Capital LLC Has $2.34 Million Stock Position in Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST)

Key Points

• Townsquare Capital LLC significantly increased its stake in Vistra Corp. by 249.9% in Q1, leading to a total of nearly 20,000 shares now valued at approximately $2.34 million.
• Vistra Corp. missed earnings estimates with a reported EPS of $1.01, falling short of the expected $1.63, and recorded revenue of $4.25 billion against a consensus estimate of $5.15 billion.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.226 per share, representing an increase from the previous dividend and yielding around 0.4% annually.

Townsquare Capital LLC boosted its position in Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST - Free Report) by 249.9% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 19,962 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 14,257 shares during the period. Townsquare Capital LLC's holdings in Vistra were worth $2,344,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. LaSalle St. Investment Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Vistra by 25.1% in the first quarter. LaSalle St. Investment Advisors LLC now owns 3,102 shares of the company's stock valued at $364,000 after acquiring an additional 623 shares during the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in Vistra by 13.4% in the first quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 606,282 shares of the company's stock valued at $71,202,000 after acquiring an additional 71,449 shares during the last quarter. Y.D. More Investments Ltd bought a new position in Vistra in the first quarter valued at about $81,000. CenterBook Partners LP bought a new position in Vistra in the first quarter valued at about $602,000. Finally, Deutsche Bank AG boosted its holdings in Vistra by 18.9% in the first quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 676,003 shares of the company's stock valued at $79,390,000 after acquiring an additional 107,315 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 90.88% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently issued reports on VST. UBS Group raised their price target on Vistra from $207.00 to $230.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, July 25th. Evercore ISI set a $192.00 target price on Vistra and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, May 15th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on Vistra from $179.00 to $203.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Vistra from $178.00 to $186.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 18th. Finally, Raymond James Financial began coverage on Vistra in a report on Friday, June 13th. They set a "strong-buy" rating and a $216.00 target price on the stock. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $192.62.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Stephanie Zapata Moore sold 35,000 shares of Vistra stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $161.44, for a total value of $5,650,400.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 88,073 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $14,218,505.12. This trade represents a 28.44% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Carrie Lee Kirby sold 108,000 shares of Vistra stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 218,239 shares in the company, valued at approximately $34,259,158.22. This represents a 33.10% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 294,000 shares of company stock worth $47,461,490 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 1.42% of the company's stock.

Vistra Stock Down 1.3%

Shares of NYSE VST traded down $2.77 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $202.52. 3,002,319 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,197,070. The firm has a market capitalization of $68.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.30, a PEG ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.58. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $191.43 and a 200 day simple moving average of $157.13. 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 announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The company reported $1.01 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.63 by ($0.62). Vistra had a net margin of 12.90% and a return on equity of 108.41%. The firm had revenue of $4.25 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.15 billion. As a group, equities analysts expect that Vistra Corp. will post 7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Vistra Increases Dividend

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

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.