Vistra (NYSE:VST) CEO Acquires $299,178.00 in Stock

Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) CEO James Burke bought 2,200 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 31st. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $135.99 per share, with a total value of $299,178.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer owned 1,141,887 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $155,285,213.13. This represents a 0.19% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link.

Vistra Trading Up 3.5%

VST stock opened at $149.27 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $50.10 billion, a PE ratio of 25.21 and a beta of 1.40. Vistra Corp. has a one year low of $132.66 and a one year high of $219.82. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $149.39 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $154.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.87, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a current ratio of 0.97.

Vistra (NYSE:VST) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, August 7th. The company reported $0.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.61 by ($0.85). Vistra had a net margin of 11.55% and a return on equity of 108.68%. The business had revenue of $4.02 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.46 billion. As a group, analysts predict that Vistra Corp. will post 9.21 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 21st will be given a dividend of $0.23 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 21st. This is a positive change from Vistra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. This represents a $0.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.6%. Vistra’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 15.54%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on VST shares. BNP Paribas Exane set a $255.00 target price on Vistra in a report on Wednesday, August 19th. Seaport Research Partners reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $230.00 price target on shares of Vistra in a research note on Monday, June 15th. Sanford C. Bernstein set a $187.00 price objective on Vistra and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 16th. Scotiabank raised their target price on shares of Vistra from $293.00 to $298.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $212.00 target price on shares of Vistra in a research note on Monday, August 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Vistra currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $223.53.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Vistra

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. BlackRock Inc. bought a new stake in Vistra during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $4,610,496,000. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Vistra in the 4th quarter worth approximately $746,729,000. Fifth Third Bancorp lifted its stake in shares of Vistra by 95.1% in the 1st quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 177,199 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,638,000 after purchasing an additional 86,393 shares during the period. Payden & Rygel boosted its position in shares of Vistra by 3,118.2% during the fourth quarter. Payden & Rygel now owns 35,400 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,711,000 after purchasing an additional 34,300 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Signature Estate & Investment Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Vistra during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,875,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.88% of the company’s stock.

Vistra Company 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.