Freemont Management S.A. Sells 47,800 Shares of Vistra Corp. $VST

Freemont Management S.A. decreased its holdings in shares of Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) by 90.5% in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 5,000 shares of the company’s stock after selling 47,800 shares during the period. Vistra makes up approximately 0.8% of Freemont Management S.A.’s holdings, making the stock its 13th largest holding. Freemont Management S.A.’s holdings in Vistra were worth $793,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in VST. BlackRock Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Vistra during the 2nd quarter worth about $4,610,496,000. Norges Bank bought a new position in Vistra in the 4th quarter valued at about $746,729,000. Fifth Third Bancorp lifted its position in Vistra by 95.1% during the first quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 177,199 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,638,000 after acquiring an additional 86,393 shares during the last quarter. Payden & Rygel lifted its position in Vistra by 3,118.2% during the fourth quarter. Payden & Rygel now owns 35,400 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,711,000 after acquiring an additional 34,300 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Signature Estate & Investment Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Vistra during the fourth quarter worth approximately $29,875,000. 90.88% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Vistra

In related news, Director John R. Sult sold 6,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $170.00, for a total transaction 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 represents a 8.42% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Paul M. Barbas sold 244 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, 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. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 41,588 shares of company stock valued at $6,739,227. 0.92% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently commented on VST shares. Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $212.00 target price on shares of Vistra in a research report on Monday, August 10th. Raymond James Financial set a $208.00 price target on Vistra in a report on Monday, April 27th. Zacks Research downgraded Vistra from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Weiss Ratings lowered Vistra from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Thursday, August 13th. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane set a $255.00 price objective on Vistra in a research report on Wednesday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have given a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Vistra presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $226.94.

Vistra Trading Down 1.8%

Shares of VST stock opened at $136.43 on Friday. Vistra Corp. has a fifty-two week low of $132.66 and a fifty-two week high of $219.82. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $153.73 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $155.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.87, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a current ratio of 0.97. The company has a market cap of $45.79 billion, a PE ratio of 23.05 and a beta of 1.41.

Vistra (NYSE:VST) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, August 7th. The company reported $0.76 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.61 by ($0.85). The business had revenue of $4.02 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.46 billion. Vistra had a return on equity of 108.68% and a net margin of 11.55%. Equities analysts predict that Vistra Corp. will post 9.23 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 21st will be issued a $0.23 dividend. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. This is an increase from Vistra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 21st. Vistra’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 15.54%.

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.