Vistra Corp. $VST Shares Sold by Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC

Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC cut its holdings in shares of Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) by 7.7% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 40,490 shares of the company’s stock after selling 3,380 shares during the quarter. Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC’s holdings in Vistra were worth $7,933,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. State Street Corp raised its stake in shares of Vistra by 1.4% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 16,660,027 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,228,880,000 after acquiring an additional 226,514 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its holdings in Vistra by 15.1% during the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 7,106,465 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,392,299,000 after purchasing an additional 930,912 shares during the period. Lone Pine Capital LLC boosted its stake in shares of Vistra by 40.5% in the 2nd quarter. Lone Pine Capital LLC now owns 6,469,719 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,253,896,000 after buying an additional 1,864,931 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Vistra during the second quarter worth about $930,080,000. Finally, Invesco Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Vistra by 25.2% during the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,537,384 shares of the company’s stock worth $879,390,000 after buying an additional 913,350 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.88% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have commented on VST. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on shares of Vistra from $230.00 to $244.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, January 12th. KeyCorp started coverage on Vistra in a report on Monday, November 24th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $217.00 price target for the company. UBS Group raised their target price on Vistra from $230.00 to $233.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 12th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Vistra in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of Vistra from $238.00 to $236.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 20th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $239.20.

Insider Transactions at Vistra

In other news, EVP Scott A. Hudson sold 56,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $168.86, for a total value of $9,456,160.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 306,600 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $51,772,476. This trade represents a 15.44% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Stephanie Zapata Moore sold 8,219 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $173.35, for a total value of $1,424,763.65. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 79,854 shares in the company, valued at $13,842,690.90. This trade represents a 9.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 166,680 shares of company stock valued at $28,761,790. Insiders own 1.42% of the company’s stock.

Vistra Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:VST opened at $162.41 on Friday. Vistra Corp. has a 52 week low of $90.51 and a 52 week high of $219.82. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $166.43 and a 200 day moving average price of $185.94. The company has a market cap of $55.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 58.63, a PEG ratio of 1.00 and a beta of 1.41. The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.74.

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

About Vistra

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.