Hancock Whitney Corp Sells 7,714 Shares of Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST)

Hancock Whitney Corp lessened its holdings in shares of Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST - Free Report) by 3.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 212,714 shares of the company's stock after selling 7,714 shares during the period. Vistra comprises approximately 0.9% of Hancock Whitney Corp's holdings, making the stock its 17th largest holding. Hancock Whitney Corp owned about 0.06% of Vistra worth $29,327,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Vistra by 2.6% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,539,243 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,174,326,000 after acquiring an additional 219,055 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its position in shares of Vistra by 63.6% during the fourth quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 6,260,363 shares of the company's stock valued at $863,116,000 after purchasing an additional 2,433,732 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Vistra during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $409,087,000. Appaloosa LP raised its holdings in Vistra by 112.5% in the fourth quarter. Appaloosa LP now owns 2,700,000 shares of the company's stock worth $372,249,000 after purchasing an additional 1,429,612 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Capital International Investors purchased a new position in Vistra during the fourth quarter valued at $286,414,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.88% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently issued reports on VST. UBS Group decreased their price target on shares of Vistra from $174.00 to $154.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on shares of Vistra from $203.00 to $186.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, March 28th. Evercore ISI started coverage on shares of Vistra in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $202.00 target price on the stock. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on shares of Vistra from $151.00 to $191.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Daiwa Capital Markets assumed coverage on Vistra in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $120.00 price objective for the company. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $166.17.

Vistra Price Performance

Shares of VST stock traded up $1.11 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $127.75. The company had a trading volume of 2,224,409 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,892,746. The company has a market capitalization of $43.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.78, a P/E/G ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 1.21. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $122.87 and its 200-day moving average price is $140.86. Vistra Corp. has a 52-week low of $66.50 and a 52-week high of $199.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.68, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 0.99.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 20th were given a dividend of $0.2235 per share. This is a positive change from Vistra's previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 20th. This represents a $0.89 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.70%. Vistra's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 12.62%.

Insider Transactions at Vistra

In other news, Director Paul M. Barbas sold 24,136 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.19, for a total transaction of $2,997,449.84. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 51,063 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,341,513.97. This represents a 32.10 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director John William Pitesa purchased 1,500 shares of Vistra stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $126.75 per share, for a total transaction of $190,125.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 3,467 shares of the company's stock, valued at $439,442.25. The trade was a 76.26 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 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.