Westpac Banking Corp Invests $1.29 Million in Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST)

Key Points

• Westpac Banking Corp has invested approximately $1.29 million in Vistra Corp, acquiring 10,946 shares during the first quarter.
• Several other hedge funds also increased their stakes in Vistra, with a notable 275.4% increase in ownership by HM Payson & Co.
• Vistra Corp. recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.226 per share, marking a slight increase from the previous dividend, and will be paid on September 30th.

Westpac Banking Corp bought a new position in shares of Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 10,946 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,285,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Bulltick Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Vistra during the first quarter worth $370,000. Independent Advisor Alliance lifted its position in shares of Vistra by 13.4% during the first quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance now owns 66,314 shares of the company's stock worth $7,788,000 after purchasing an additional 7,844 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC bought a new stake in shares of Vistra in the first quarter worth $209,149,000. Virtu Financial LLC raised its holdings in Vistra by 897.6% in the first quarter. Virtu Financial LLC now owns 23,732 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,787,000 after acquiring an additional 21,353 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Benjamin Edwards Inc. acquired a new stake in Vistra in the first quarter valued at $558,000. 90.88% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

VST has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Vistra from $178.00 to $186.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 18th. Raymond James Financial initiated coverage on shares of Vistra in a report on Friday, June 13th. They issued a "strong-buy" rating and a $216.00 price target on the stock. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $229.00 price target (up from $191.00) on shares of Vistra in a report on Tuesday. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on shares of Vistra from $179.00 to $203.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Evercore ISI set a $192.00 price target on shares of Vistra and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, May 15th. Three investment 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 data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $192.62.

Vistra Stock Performance

VST stock traded down $2.77 during trading on Thursday, hitting $202.52. 3,002,319 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,197,070. The company has a quick ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.58. Vistra Corp. has a 52 week low of $72.90 and a 52 week high of $216.85. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $191.43 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $157.13. The stock has a market capitalization of $68.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.30.

Vistra (NYSE:VST - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The company reported $1.01 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.63 by ($0.62). Vistra had a net margin of 12.90% and a return on equity of 108.41%. The business had revenue of $4.25 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.15 billion. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Vistra Corp. will post 7 EPS for the current fiscal 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 given a dividend of $0.226 per share. This is an increase from Vistra's previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. This represents a $0.90 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 19th. Vistra's payout ratio is currently 14.35%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Vistra

In other news, EVP Scott A. Hudson sold 56,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $157.00, for a total transaction of $8,792,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 306,600 shares in the company, valued at approximately $48,136,200. This represents a 15.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Scott B. Helm sold 50,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $172.75, for a total transaction of $8,637,500.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 255,192 shares of the company's stock, valued at $44,084,418. This represents a 16.38% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 294,000 shares of company stock valued at $47,461,490. Corporate 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.