2,917 Shares in Vistra Corp. $VST Bought by West Family Investments Inc.

West Family Investments Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) during the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund acquired 2,917 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $565,000.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Schroder Investment Management Group grew its holdings in shares of Vistra by 55.5% during the second quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 225,829 shares of the company’s stock worth $43,768,000 after buying an additional 80,580 shares during the last quarter. Virtus Investment Advisers LLC grew its stake in shares of Vistra by 15.3% in the 2nd quarter. Virtus Investment Advisers LLC now owns 10,943 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,121,000 after purchasing an additional 1,449 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Vistra during the second quarter worth approximately $930,080,000. Scotia Capital Inc. raised its stake in shares of Vistra by 17.0% during the second quarter. Scotia Capital Inc. now owns 22,480 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,357,000 after purchasing an additional 3,263 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System lifted its holdings in shares of Vistra by 1.1% during the second quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System now owns 346,660 shares of the company’s stock worth $67,186,000 after purchasing an additional 3,650 shares during the period. 90.88% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Vistra Trading Up 1.2%

Shares of VST opened at $179.00 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.74, a current ratio of 0.99 and a quick ratio of 0.88. Vistra Corp. has a 1-year low of $90.51 and a 1-year high of $219.82. The stock has a market cap of $60.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 64.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.08 and a beta of 1.30. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $191.92 and a 200-day simple moving average of $189.01.

Vistra (NYSE:VST) last posted its earnings results on Friday, November 7th. The company reported $1.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.78 by ($0.03). The company had revenue of $4.97 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.60 billion. Vistra had a net margin of 6.70% and a return on equity of 64.04%. Equities analysts forecast that Vistra Corp. will post 7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 31st. Investors of record on Monday, December 22nd will be given a dividend of $0.227 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 22nd. This represents a $0.91 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.5%. This is a boost from Vistra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. Vistra’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 32.49%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have commented on VST. KeyCorp began coverage on shares of Vistra in a research report on Monday, November 24th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $217.00 price objective for the company. Melius assumed coverage on shares of Vistra in a report on Wednesday, August 20th. They set a “buy” rating and a $295.00 price target for the company. Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $225.00 price objective on shares of Vistra in a research report on Thursday, November 20th. Daiwa Capital Markets raised Vistra from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $250.00 price target for the company in a report on Wednesday, September 17th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “hold” rating and set a $230.00 price objective (down previously from $241.00) on shares of Vistra in a report on Monday, September 22nd. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have issued a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $233.20.

Insider Activity at Vistra

In other Vistra news, CEO James A. Burke sold 43,074 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $208.75, for a total value of $8,991,697.50. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 217,025 shares in the company, valued at approximately $45,303,968.75. This represents a 16.56% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Carrie Lee Kirby sold 58,275 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $174.75, for a total transaction of $10,183,556.25. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 218,239 shares in the company, valued at $38,137,265.25. This represents a 21.07% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last quarter, insiders sold 868,339 shares of company stock valued at $173,242,584. 1.42% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Vistra 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.