Vistra Corp. $VST Shares Sold by The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company reduced its stake in Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) by 3.0% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 198,841 shares of the company’s stock after selling 6,073 shares during the quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company owned about 0.06% of Vistra worth $29,892,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in VST. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in Vistra by 0.9% in the 4th 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 last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its stake in shares of Vistra by 2.7% during the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 16,474,869 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,657,891,000 after purchasing an additional 432,028 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Vistra by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,965,648 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,441,112,000 after buying an additional 97,424 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Vistra during the fourth quarter worth about $746,729,000. Finally, Invesco Ltd. raised its position in shares of Vistra by 0.8% in the third 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 last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.88% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

VST has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Raymond James Financial set a $208.00 target price on shares of Vistra in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Weiss Ratings downgraded Vistra from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Thursday, July 16th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Vistra from $208.00 to $212.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on Vistra from $240.00 to $231.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, UBS Group lowered their price objective on Vistra from $233.00 to $227.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $229.88.

Vistra News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Vistra this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley raised its price target to $212 and maintained a Buy rating, signaling substantial potential upside from recent trading levels. Morgan Stanley Raises Vistra Price Target
• Positive Sentiment: Vistra declared a quarterly common-stock dividend of $0.23 per share, payable September 30 to shareholders of record September 21. The roughly $75 million distribution provides ongoing shareholder support. Vistra Declares Dividend
• Positive Sentiment: Investor interest in Vistra’s power-generation capacity could benefit from rising electricity demand associated with data centers, although regulatory limits in New York introduce uncertainty. Vistra Stock Looks Reasonable Following New York Data Center Limits
• Neutral Sentiment: Vistra is scheduled to report quarterly results next week. Analysts expect earnings growth, but the company reportedly lacks the combination of estimate revisions and other indicators that typically signal a likely earnings beat. Vistra Earnings Expectations
• Negative Sentiment: Shares fell sharply following an analyst downgrade, which appears to be the main recent pressure on the stock. The downgrade offsets Morgan Stanley’s more bullish view and may encourage investors to reduce exposure before earnings. Vistra Shares Down After Analyst Downgrade

Vistra Stock Performance

Vistra stock opened at $148.49 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $50.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.87 and a beta of 1.40. Vistra Corp. has a 12 month low of $132.66 and a 12 month high of $219.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.51, a current ratio of 0.90 and a quick ratio of 0.79. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $156.53 and its 200-day moving average is $158.06.

Vistra (NYSE:VST) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $2.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.32 by $1.55. The firm 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%. Equities analysts anticipate that Vistra Corp. will post 9.34 earnings per share for the current year.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 21st will be paid a $0.23 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 21st. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.6%. This is a boost from Vistra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. Vistra’s payout ratio is 15.41%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Vistra

In other Vistra news, Director John R. Sult sold 6,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.00, for a total transaction of $1,105,000.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 70,714 shares in the company, valued at $12,021,380. The trade was a 8.42% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, 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 company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $153.00, for a total value of $37,332.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 53,006 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,109,918. The trade was a 0.46% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 41,588 shares of company stock worth $6,739,227. Insiders own 0.92% 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.