Vanguard Group Inc. Sells 1,817,964 Shares of Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST)

Vanguard Group Inc. decreased its holdings in Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) by 4.3% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 40,704,634 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,817,964 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. owned 11.70% of Vistra worth $2,835,078,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. IFM Investors Pty Ltd grew its holdings in Vistra by 15.3% during the 4th quarter. IFM Investors Pty Ltd now owns 102,237 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,938,000 after buying an additional 13,551 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James & Associates increased its holdings in Vistra by 4.3% in the 4th quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 2,145,891 shares of the company’s stock valued at $82,660,000 after acquiring an additional 87,494 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in Vistra by 5.2% in the 4th quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 29,726 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,145,000 after purchasing an additional 1,480 shares in the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Vistra by 19,070.8% during the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 5,566,621 shares of the company’s stock valued at $214,426,000 after purchasing an additional 5,537,584 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Artemis Investment Management LLP bought a new stake in shares of Vistra in the fourth quarter worth about $25,395,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.88% of the company’s stock.

Vistra Trading Down 0.1 %

Shares of VST traded down $0.08 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $76.47. The stock had a trading volume of 5,141,383 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,097,717. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $90.65 and its 200 day moving average is $69.27. The firm has a market cap of $26.57 billion, a PE ratio of 46.91 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.06, a current ratio of 1.08 and a quick ratio of 0.96. Vistra Corp. has a 1 year low of $27.21 and a 1 year high of $107.24.

Vistra (NYSE:VST) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 9th. The company reported $0.23 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.62 by ($0.39). The firm had revenue of $3.05 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.81 billion. Vistra had a net margin of 5.66% and a return on equity of 24.72%. As a group, analysts forecast that Vistra Corp. will post 4.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 28th. Investors of record on Wednesday, June 19th were issued a dividend of $0.218 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, June 18th. This represents a $0.87 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.14%. This is a boost from Vistra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. Vistra’s payout ratio is presently 53.37%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently commented on VST. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on Vistra from $79.00 to $109.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, May 10th. Janney Montgomery Scott assumed coverage on shares of Vistra in a report on Thursday, April 18th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $82.00 target price for the company. Evercore ISI boosted their price target on shares of Vistra from $72.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. Guggenheim upgraded shares of Vistra to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 7th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Vistra from $85.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 9th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Vistra currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $87.83.

Insider Buying and Selling at Vistra

In related news, Director Lisa Crutchfield bought 335 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 10th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $89.46 per share, with a total value of $29,969.10. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 32,186 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,879,359.56. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 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.