Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA Increases Stake in Vistra Corp. $VST

Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA boosted its holdings in shares of Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) by 56.8% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 152,657 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 55,291 shares during the period. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA’s holdings in Vistra were worth $22,949,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of VST. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Vistra by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 41,588,784 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,709,519,000 after purchasing an additional 390,157 shares during the period. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in Vistra by 2.7% in the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 16,474,869 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,657,891,000 after purchasing an additional 432,028 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Vistra by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,965,648 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,441,112,000 after buying an additional 97,424 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Vistra during the 4th quarter worth approximately $746,729,000. Finally, Invesco Ltd. raised its position in shares of Vistra by 0.8% during the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,572,642 shares of the company’s stock valued at $895,872,000 after buying an additional 35,258 shares during the period. 90.88% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the company. TD Cowen reduced their target price on Vistra from $253.00 to $230.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Sanford C. Bernstein set a $187.00 price objective on Vistra and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 16th. Seaport Research Partners restated a “buy” rating and issued a $230.00 price objective on shares of Vistra in a report on Monday, June 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on shares of Vistra from $240.00 to $231.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $210.00 target price on shares of Vistra in a research note on Wednesday. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have given a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $230.31.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Paul M. Barbas sold 244 shares of Vistra stock in a transaction on Monday, June 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $153.00, for a total transaction of $37,332.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 53,006 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,109,918. The trade was a 0.46% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director John R. Sult sold 6,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $170.00, for a total value of $1,105,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 70,714 shares in the company, valued at $12,021,380. This trade represents a 8.42% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 41,588 shares of company stock worth $6,739,227. Insiders own 0.92% of the company’s stock.

Vistra Price Performance

Vistra stock opened at $163.69 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $55.19 billion, a PE ratio of 27.42 and a beta of 1.40. Vistra Corp. has a 52-week low of $132.66 and a 52-week high of $219.82. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.51. The company’s 50 day moving average is $154.82 and its two-hundred day moving average is $159.37.

Vistra (NYSE:VST) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $2.87 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.32 by $1.55. The business had revenue of $5.64 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.22 billion. Vistra had a net margin of 11.52% and a return on equity of 105.64%. On average, research analysts expect that Vistra Corp. will post 9.52 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The company 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 $0.229 dividend. This is an increase from Vistra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 22nd. Vistra’s payout ratio is presently 15.41%.

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.