James A. Burke Sells 21,360 Shares of Vistra (NYSE:VST) Stock

Key Points

• Vistra Corp. CEO James Burke sold 21,360 shares of the company's stock on September 19th for a total of $4,517,640, reducing his ownership stake by 8.39% to approximately $49.3 million.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.226 per share, an increase from the previous $0.23, which will be paid to shareholders on September 30th.
• Vistra's latest earnings report showed a significant miss on estimates, with earnings per share of $1.01 against a consensus estimate of $1.63, along with a revenue of $4.25 billion compared to an expected $5.15 billion.

Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST - Get Free Report) CEO James A. Burke sold 21,360 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $211.50, for a total value of $4,517,640.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 233,242 shares in the company, valued at $49,330,683. This trade represents a 8.39% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website.

Vistra Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE VST traded down $12.24 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $205.68. The company had a trading volume of 4,555,807 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,771,973. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $198.57 and a 200 day simple moving average of $165.60. 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 Corp. has a 12 month low of $90.51 and a 12 month high of $219.82. The firm has a market capitalization of $69.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 1.34.

Vistra (NYSE:VST - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 7th. The company reported $1.01 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.63 by ($0.62). The company had revenue of $4.25 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.15 billion. Vistra had a return on equity of 108.41% and a net margin of 12.90%. As a group, analysts anticipate that Vistra Corp. will post 7 earnings per share for the current year.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Investors of record on Friday, September 19th will be paid a dividend of $0.226 per share. This is a boost from Vistra's previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 19th. This represents a $0.90 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.4%. Vistra's dividend payout ratio is 14.35%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently issued reports on the company. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a "hold" rating and set a $230.00 target price (down previously from $241.00) on shares of Vistra in a research note on Monday. Daiwa America raised Vistra from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 17th. Morgan Stanley set a $207.00 target price on Vistra and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 21st. Wall Street Zen downgraded Vistra from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Friday, September 5th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on Vistra from $179.00 to $203.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 13th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have given a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $213.00.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Vistra

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Bridgewater Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Vistra by 4.0% in the 2nd quarter. Bridgewater Advisors Inc. now owns 1,734 shares of the company's stock worth $333,000 after buying an additional 67 shares during the period. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Vistra by 2.2% in the 2nd quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 3,256 shares of the company's stock worth $631,000 after buying an additional 71 shares during the period. Fogel Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Vistra by 0.9% in the 2nd quarter. Fogel Capital Management Inc. now owns 7,897 shares of the company's stock worth $1,531,000 after buying an additional 72 shares during the period. Red Mountain Financial LLC raised its position in shares of Vistra by 3.1% in the 2nd quarter. Red Mountain Financial LLC now owns 2,435 shares of the company's stock worth $472,000 after acquiring an additional 74 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Parallel Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Vistra by 3.1% in the 2nd quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 2,528 shares of the company's stock worth $490,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. 90.88% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.