HITE Hedge Asset Management LLC Purchases New Position in Vistra Corp. $VST

HITE Hedge Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor bought 59,972 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,750,000.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Salomon & Ludwin LLC bought a new position in shares of Vistra in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Quent Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Vistra in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Archer Investment Corp increased its holdings in shares of Vistra by 2,700.0% during the third quarter. Archer Investment Corp now owns 140 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 135 shares in the last quarter. Twin Peaks Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Vistra during the 2nd quarter valued at about $28,000. Finally, Pinpoint Asset Management Singapore Pte. Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Vistra during the third quarter valued at approximately $28,000. 90.88% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 114,409 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $18,340,906.79. This trade represents a 8.04% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 1.42% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the company. BMO Capital Markets reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $241.00 price objective on shares of Vistra in a report on Monday, March 2nd. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Vistra in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Bank of America decreased their target price on shares of Vistra from $231.00 to $218.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 12th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on Vistra from $236.00 to $234.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 27th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded shares of Vistra from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $205.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have issued a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $236.40.

Vistra Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:VST opened at $159.78 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $163.61 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $178.68. Vistra Corp. has a 52 week low of $90.51 and a 52 week high of $219.82. The company has a quick ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.01. The stock has a market capitalization of $54.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 73.63, a PEG ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 1.42.

Vistra (NYSE:VST) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 26th. The company reported $2.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.45 by ($0.27). Vistra had a net margin of 5.32% and a return on equity of 81.09%. The business had revenue of $4.58 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.75 billion. On average, analysts expect that Vistra Corp. will post 7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 20th will be given a dividend of $0.228 per share. This represents a $0.91 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.6%. This is a boost from Vistra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 20th. Vistra’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 41.94%.

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.