Legato Capital Management LLC Buys New Stake in Vistra Corp. $VST

Legato Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 5,354 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $864,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in VST. Palidye Holdings Caymans Ltd bought a new stake in Vistra in the second quarter valued at about $145,987,000. Situational Awareness LP increased its stake in Vistra by 142.3% in the second quarter. Situational Awareness LP now owns 1,274,178 shares of the company’s stock valued at $246,948,000 after acquiring an additional 748,332 shares during the period. Moore Capital Management LP increased its stake in Vistra by 2,072.6% in the second quarter. Moore Capital Management LP now owns 528,657 shares of the company’s stock valued at $102,459,000 after acquiring an additional 504,324 shares during the period. Rubric Capital Management LP increased its stake in Vistra by 50.6% in the second quarter. Rubric Capital Management LP now owns 1,424,803 shares of the company’s stock valued at $276,141,000 after acquiring an additional 478,834 shares during the period. Finally, Schroder Investment Management Group boosted its position in Vistra by 181.2% in the third quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 635,015 shares of the company’s stock valued at $124,412,000 after buying an additional 409,186 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 90.88% of the company’s stock.

Vistra Price Performance

Shares of VST stock opened at $156.40 on Tuesday. Vistra Corp. has a 1 year low of $132.66 and a 1 year high of $219.82. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $154.42 and its 200-day moving average is $162.65. The firm has a market capitalization of $52.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.20, a PEG ratio of 0.89 and a beta of 1.43. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.51.

Vistra (NYSE:VST) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $2.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.32 by $1.55. Vistra had a net margin of 11.52% and a return on equity of 105.64%. The company had revenue of $5.64 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.22 billion. Sell-side analysts forecast that Vistra Corp. will post 9.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Investors of record on Monday, June 22nd will be paid a dividend of $0.229 per share. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.6%. This is a positive change from Vistra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 22nd. Vistra’s payout ratio is presently 15.24%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have commented on VST shares. TD Cowen reduced their price target on shares of Vistra from $253.00 to $230.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a $190.00 price target on shares of Vistra in a research report on Thursday. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded shares of Vistra from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $205.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $212.00 price target on shares of Vistra in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of Vistra from $236.00 to $234.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 27th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Vistra has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $233.33.

Insider Buying and Selling at Vistra

In related news, EVP Stephanie Zapata Moore sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $160.31, for a total transaction of $1,603,100.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 114,409 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $18,340,906.79. The trade was a 8.04% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.92% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Vistra Company Profile

Vistra (NYSE: VST) is an integrated power company that develops, owns and operates electricity generation and retail businesses in the United States. The company’s operations span wholesale power production—through a diversified fleet of thermal and lower‑carbon generation assets—and retail electricity supply to residential, commercial and industrial customers. Vistra serves organized wholesale markets and competitive retail markets, with a notable presence in Texas and other regional U.S. power markets.

Vistra’s core activities include the ownership and operation of generation facilities, the commercial dispatch and optimization of those assets into wholesale markets, and the sale of electricity and related services to end-use customers through its retail brands.