LPL Financial LLC Boosts Stock Holdings in Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST)

LPL Financial LLC lifted its stake in Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) by 58.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 315,464 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 116,226 shares during the period. LPL Financial LLC’s holdings in Vistra were worth $43,493,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of VST. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Vistra in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $237,441,000. Appaloosa LP increased its holdings in Vistra by 112.5% in the fourth quarter. Appaloosa LP now owns 2,700,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $372,249,000 after buying an additional 1,429,612 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its stake in Vistra by 6.8% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 16,355,255 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,938,752,000 after buying an additional 1,037,402 shares in the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC lifted its holdings in Vistra by 36.0% during the 3rd quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 3,781,908 shares of the company’s stock worth $448,320,000 after buying an additional 1,000,307 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Two Sigma Advisers LP acquired a new position in shares of Vistra during the 3rd quarter worth about $70,753,000. 90.88% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Evercore ISI started coverage on Vistra in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. They set an “outperform” rating and a $202.00 target price on the stock. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Vistra from $161.00 to $174.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Daiwa Capital Markets assumed coverage on shares of Vistra in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $120.00 target price for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of Vistra from $203.00 to $186.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on shares of Vistra from $151.00 to $191.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Vistra has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $163.50.

Insider Transactions at Vistra

In other news, Director John William Pitesa purchased 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $126.75 per share, for a total transaction of $190,125.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 3,467 shares in the company, valued at $439,442.25. The trade was a 76.26 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Paul M. Barbas sold 24,136 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $124.19, for a total transaction of $2,997,449.84. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 51,063 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,341,513.97. The trade was a 32.10 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 1.42% of the company’s stock.

Vistra Stock Performance

NYSE VST opened at $119.05 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $147.39 and its 200 day moving average price is $139.96. The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.68. The firm has a market cap of $40.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.21, a P/E/G ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 1.21. Vistra Corp. has a 52-week low of $64.26 and a 52-week high of $199.84.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 20th will be issued a $0.2235 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 20th. This represents a $0.89 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.75%. This is a positive change from Vistra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. Vistra’s payout ratio is presently 12.62%.

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.