Vistra Corp. $VST Stake Boosted by Spirit of America Management Corp NY

Key Points

• Spirit of America Management Corp NY increased its stake in Vistra Corp. by 6.3% during Q2, now holding 24,500 shares valued at approximately $4.75 million.
• Vistra recently reported Q2 earnings of $1.01 EPS, missing consensus estimates and generating revenue of $4.25 billion against a forecast of $5.15 billion.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.226, representing an annualized yield of 0.4%, which is an increase from the previous quarterly dividend of $0.23.

Spirit of America Management Corp NY increased its stake in Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST - Free Report) by 6.3% during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 24,500 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 1,450 shares during the quarter. Vistra makes up 1.0% of Spirit of America Management Corp NY's investment portfolio, making the stock its 29th largest holding. Spirit of America Management Corp NY's holdings in Vistra were worth $4,748,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of VST. Banque Transatlantique SA increased its stake in Vistra by 132.0% in the 1st quarter. Banque Transatlantique SA now owns 232 shares of the company's stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 132 shares in the last quarter. HM Payson & Co. increased its stake in Vistra by 275.4% in the 1st quarter. HM Payson & Co. now owns 229 shares of the company's stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 168 shares in the last quarter. Keener Financial Planning LLC purchased a new position in Vistra in the 1st quarter worth about $34,000. WPG Advisers LLC purchased a new position in Vistra in the 1st quarter worth about $37,000. Finally, Zions Bancorporation National Association UT purchased a new position in Vistra in the 1st quarter worth about $39,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.88% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

VST has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Cowen started coverage on Vistra in a research note on Wednesday. They issued a "buy" rating on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Vistra from $227.00 to $248.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 24th. Daiwa Capital Markets raised Vistra from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $250.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, September 17th. TD Cowen began coverage on Vistra in a research note on Thursday. They set a "buy" rating and a $250.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Vistra in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $229.31.

Vistra Trading Down 4.2%

Shares of NYSE VST opened at $201.53 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $68.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.14, a PEG ratio of 2.99 and a beta of 1.33. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $200.58 and a 200 day simple moving average of $175.51. Vistra Corp. has a 52 week low of $90.51 and a 52 week high of $219.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.58, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 0.90.

Vistra (NYSE:VST - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly 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 firm had revenue of $4.25 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.15 billion. Vistra had a net margin of 12.90% and a return on equity of 108.41%. On average, research analysts predict that Vistra Corp. will post 7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Investors of record on Friday, September 19th were paid a $0.226 dividend. This represents a $0.90 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 19th. This is a positive change from Vistra's previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. Vistra's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 14.35%.

Insider Activity at Vistra

In related news, CEO James A. Burke sold 21,355 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $215.21, for a total value of $4,595,809.55. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 282,597 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $60,817,700.37. The trade was a 7.03% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Over the last three months, insiders sold 590,228 shares of company stock valued at $121,653,740. Insiders own 1.42% of the company's stock.

Vistra Company 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.

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