Westwood Holdings Group Inc. Takes $2.30 Million Position in Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST)

Key Points

• Westwood Holdings Group Inc. has acquired a new position of 19,546 shares in Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST), valued at approximately $2.3 million.
• Vistra recently declared an increase in its quarterly dividend to $0.226, which will be paid on September 30th to investors of record.
• Analysts have set various price targets for Vistra, with UBS raising its target from $207.00 to $230.00, indicating a continuing positive outlook for the company.

Westwood Holdings Group Inc. 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 SEC. The fund bought 19,546 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,295,000.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. HM Payson & Co. grew its holdings in Vistra by 275.4% in the 1st quarter. HM Payson & Co. now owns 229 shares of the company's stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 168 shares in the last quarter. Ameriflex Group Inc. acquired a new position in Vistra in the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. Keener Financial Planning LLC acquired a new position in Vistra in the 1st quarter valued at $34,000. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Vistra in the 1st quarter valued at $46,000. Finally, Golden State Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Vistra by 2,540.0% during the 1st quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 396 shares of the company's stock valued at $47,000 after acquiring an additional 381 shares during the period. 90.88% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on VST. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on Vistra from $145.00 to $241.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday. Raymond James Financial began coverage on Vistra in a research report on Friday, June 13th. They set a "strong-buy" rating and a $216.00 target price for the company. Evercore ISI set a $192.00 target price on Vistra and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 15th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on Vistra from $134.00 to $164.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, May 23rd. Finally, UBS Group upped their target price on Vistra from $207.00 to $230.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, July 25th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $186.69.

Vistra Trading Down 1.6%

Vistra stock traded down $3.24 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $202.35. The stock had a trading volume of 4,060,980 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,319,267. The company has a quick ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.53. The stock has a market cap of $68.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.82, a P/E/G ratio of 2.50 and a beta of 1.30. Vistra Corp. has a one year low of $72.90 and a one year high of $216.85. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $188.82 and its 200-day simple moving average is $156.36.

Vistra (NYSE:VST - Get Free Report) last posted 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 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 101.61%. On average, equities analysts predict 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. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 19th will be given a $0.226 dividend. This is a boost from Vistra's previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. This represents a $0.90 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 19th. Vistra's dividend payout ratio is 14.15%.

Insider Transactions at Vistra

In other Vistra news, EVP Scott A. Hudson sold 56,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 306,600 shares in the company, valued at approximately $48,136,200. This trade represents a 15.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Carrie Lee Kirby sold 108,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 of the company's stock, valued at approximately $34,259,158.22. The trade was a 33.10% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 294,000 shares of company stock valued at $47,461,490. 1.42% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.