Vistra Corp. $VST Shares Sold by First Dallas Securities Inc.

First Dallas Securities Inc. reduced its position in Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) by 21.6% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 19,208 shares of the company’s stock after selling 5,280 shares during the period. Vistra accounts for about 1.5% of First Dallas Securities Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 16th biggest holding. First Dallas Securities Inc.’s holdings in Vistra were worth $3,723,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Bridgewater Advisors Inc. raised its position in Vistra by 4.0% in the 2nd 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 grew its position in Vistra by 2.2% during the 2nd quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 3,256 shares of the company’s stock worth $631,000 after purchasing an additional 71 shares during the last quarter. Fogel Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in Vistra by 0.9% in 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 period. Red Mountain Financial LLC increased its stake in Vistra by 3.1% in 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 period. Finally, Parallel Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Vistra by 3.1% in the second quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 2,528 shares of the company’s stock valued at $490,000 after buying an additional 75 shares during the last quarter. 90.88% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO James A. Burke sold 43,074 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $208.75, for a total transaction 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 ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders sold 723,910 shares of company stock valued at $148,086,569 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 1.42% of the company’s stock.

Vistra Stock Performance

Shares of VST opened at $190.65 on Monday. Vistra Corp. has a 1 year low of $90.51 and a 1 year high of $219.82. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $199.04 and its 200 day simple moving average is $185.25. The company has a market capitalization of $64.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 68.83, a PEG ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 1.30. 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) last released its earnings results on Thursday, November 6th. The company reported $1.75 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.78 by ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $4.97 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.60 billion. Vistra had a return on equity of 64.88% and a net margin of 6.70%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Vistra Corp. will post 7 EPS for the current year.

Vistra Increases Dividend

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently issued reports on VST. Cowen initiated coverage on Vistra in a report on Wednesday, October 15th. They set a “buy” rating on the stock. Melius initiated coverage on Vistra in a research report on Wednesday, August 20th. They set a “buy” rating and a $295.00 price objective for the company. Scotiabank initiated coverage on Vistra in a research note on Monday, September 22nd. They issued a “sector outperform” rating and a $256.00 target price on the stock. Melius Research raised Vistra to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 20th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped 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. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have given a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $234.21.

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.