Clearbridge Investments LLC Cuts Stock Position in Vistra Corp. $VST

Clearbridge Investments LLC lowered its position in Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) by 12.5% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 1,682,219 shares of the company’s stock after selling 239,294 shares during the quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC’s holdings in Vistra were worth $271,392,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of VST. Fideuram Intesa Sanpaolo Private Banking S.P.A. purchased a new stake in Vistra during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Pinpoint Asset Management Singapore Pte. Ltd. acquired a new stake in Vistra during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Salomon & Ludwin LLC lifted its stake in Vistra by 74.8% during the 4th quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 215 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 92 shares during the period. Triumph Capital Management acquired a new position in shares of Vistra in the 3rd quarter valued at $38,000. Finally, Strive Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Vistra in the 3rd quarter valued at $38,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.88% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Vistra

In other news, EVP Stephanie Zapata Moore sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $160.31, for a total value of $1,603,100.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 114,409 shares in the company, valued at $18,340,906.79. This trade represents a 8.04% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CAO Margaret Montemayor sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $164.96, for a total transaction of $824,800.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 14,360 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,368,825.60. The trade was a 25.83% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 19,600 shares of company stock worth $3,163,900. Company insiders own 0.92% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Raymond James Financial set a $208.00 target price on shares of Vistra in a research note on Monday, April 27th. TD Cowen decreased their target price on shares of Vistra from $253.00 to $230.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, May 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on shares of Vistra from $240.00 to $231.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $212.00 target price on shares of Vistra in a research note on Thursday, May 21st. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Vistra from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Monday, May 11th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have given a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $233.33.

Vistra Price Performance

Shares of NYSE VST opened at $148.72 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $50.15 billion, a PE ratio of 24.91 and a beta of 1.40. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $154.21 and a 200 day moving average of $161.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.51, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a current ratio of 0.90. Vistra Corp. has a one year low of $132.66 and a one year high of $219.82.

Vistra (NYSE:VST) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $2.87 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.32 by $1.55. The business had revenue of $5.64 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.22 billion. Vistra had a return on equity of 105.64% and a net margin of 11.52%. As a group, research analysts predict that Vistra Corp. will post 9.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 22nd will be given a $0.229 dividend. This represents a $0.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.6%. This is a boost from Vistra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 22nd. Vistra’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 15.24%.

Vistra 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.