Vistra (NYSE:VST) CEO Sells $4,595,809.55 in Stock

Key Points

• Vistra Corp. CEO James Burke sold 21,355 shares for approximately $4.6 million, reducing his ownership by 7.03%, while still retaining about 282,597 shares valued at over $60 million.
• The company's stock recently traded at $201.53, down from a 12-month high of $219.82, amid an earnings report that fell short of expectations with $1.01 earnings per share against a forecast of $1.63.
• Vistra declared an increased quarterly dividend of $0.226, raising its annualized dividend yield to 0.4% and maintaining a dividend payout ratio of 14.35%.

Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST - Get Free Report) CEO James Burke sold 21,355 shares of the company's stock in a transaction 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 transaction, 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 ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink.

Vistra Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:VST traded down $8.87 on Friday, hitting $201.53. The company's stock had a trading volume of 3,994,831 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,878,225. Vistra Corp. has a 12 month low of $90.51 and a 12 month high of $219.82. The company has a market capitalization of $68.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.99 and a beta of 1.33. The stock's 50-day moving average is $200.58 and its two-hundred day moving average is $175.51. 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 released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The company reported $1.01 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.63 by ($0.62). Vistra had a return on equity of 108.41% and a net margin of 12.90%.The business had revenue of $4.25 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.15 billion. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Vistra Corp. will post 7 EPS for the current year.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 19th were paid a $0.226 dividend. 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. This represents a $0.90 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.4%. Vistra's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 14.35%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Vistra

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Vistra from $207.00 to $223.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, September 25th. Melius Research raised Vistra to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 20th. Daiwa America raised Vistra from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 17th. Cowen started coverage on Vistra in a research note on Wednesday. They set a "buy" rating for the company. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut Vistra from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Friday, September 5th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $229.31.

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.