Independent Advisor Alliance Has $7.79 Million Holdings in Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST)

Key Points

• Independent Advisor Alliance increased its stake in Vistra Corp. by 13.4%, owning 66,314 shares valued at approximately $7.79 million.
• Several hedge funds have also recently changed their positions, with HM Payson & Co. raising its stake in Vistra by 275.4%.
• Vistra announced an increase in its quarterly dividend to $0.226 per share, up from the previous quarter’s $0.23, with an ex-dividend date set for September 19th.

Independent Advisor Alliance lifted its position in Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST - Free Report) by 13.4% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 66,314 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 7,844 shares during the period. Independent Advisor Alliance's holdings in Vistra were worth $7,788,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of VST. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in Vistra by 28.7% during the 4th quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 198,078 shares of the company's stock worth $27,309,000 after buying an additional 44,161 shares during the period. Scotia Capital Inc. grew its stake in shares of Vistra by 55.0% in the fourth quarter. Scotia Capital Inc. now owns 15,869 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,188,000 after buying an additional 5,629 shares in the last quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. grew its stake in shares of Vistra by 239.2% in the fourth quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 72,832 shares of the company's stock valued at $10,040,000 after buying an additional 51,358 shares in the last quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC grew its stake in shares of Vistra by 17.9% in the fourth quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 5,705 shares of the company's stock valued at $787,000 after buying an additional 867 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sagespring Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in Vistra during the fourth quarter worth $237,000. 90.88% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Vistra

In related news, EVP Scott A. Hudson sold 56,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $157.00, for a total value of $8,792,000.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 306,600 shares in the company, valued at $48,136,200. This represents a 15.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Carrie Lee Kirby sold 108,000 shares of the company's 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 owned 218,239 shares in the company, valued at $34,259,158.22. The trade was a 33.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 294,000 shares of company stock valued at $47,461,490. Corporate insiders own 1.42% of the company's stock.

Vistra Price Performance

NYSE VST traded down $4.08 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $205.48. 4,109,853 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,321,755. 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 company has a market cap of $69.62 billion, a PE ratio of 32.77, a P/E/G ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 1.30. Vistra Corp. has a fifty-two week low of $72.90 and a fifty-two week high of $216.85. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $190.80 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $156.67.

Vistra (NYSE:VST - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The company reported $1.01 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.63 by ($0.62). The business had revenue of $4.25 billion for 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%. Research analysts expect that Vistra Corp. will post 7 EPS for the current year.

Vistra Increases Dividend

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have commented on VST. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on shares of Vistra from $191.00 to $229.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday. Raymond James Financial initiated coverage on Vistra in a report on Friday, June 13th. They set a "strong-buy" rating and a $216.00 target price for the company. UBS Group lifted their target price on Vistra from $207.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, July 25th. Morgan Stanley lifted 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, Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on Vistra from $145.00 to $241.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, August 8th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $192.62.

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.