Vistra Corp. $VST Shares Sold by Northside Capital Management LLC

Northside Capital Management LLC reduced its stake in shares of Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) by 21.0% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 137,925 shares of the company’s stock after selling 36,622 shares during the period. Vistra accounts for about 2.5% of Northside Capital Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 10th largest holding. Northside Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Vistra were worth $27,022,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in VST. Aberdeen Group plc boosted its stake in Vistra by 2.2% during the first quarter. Aberdeen Group plc now owns 117,283 shares of the company’s stock worth $13,563,000 after buying an additional 2,484 shares during the last quarter. Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. acquired a new position in shares of Vistra during the 1st quarter valued at about $633,000. Versor Investments LP purchased a new stake in shares of Vistra in the first quarter valued at about $593,000. Brooklyn Investment Group increased its position in Vistra by 276.8% during the first quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 1,119 shares of the company’s stock worth $131,000 after purchasing an additional 822 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp raised its stake in Vistra by 1.9% during the first quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 3,083,842 shares of the company’s stock worth $362,166,000 after purchasing an additional 57,358 shares during the period. 90.88% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently weighed in on VST. KeyCorp initiated coverage on Vistra in a research report on Monday, November 24th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $217.00 price objective for the company. TD Cowen initiated coverage on Vistra in a report on Thursday, October 16th. They set a “buy” rating and a $250.00 price target for the company. Cowen started coverage on Vistra in a research report on Wednesday, October 15th. They set a “buy” rating for the company. Scotiabank assumed coverage on shares of Vistra in a research report on Monday, September 22nd. They issued a “sector outperform” rating and a $256.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Daiwa America raised shares of Vistra from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 17th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have issued a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Vistra presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $232.40.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Scott A. Hudson sold 56,000 shares of Vistra stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $168.86, for a total value of $9,456,160.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 306,600 shares in the company, valued at $51,772,476. The trade was a 15.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO James A. Burke sold 41,426 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $201.32, for a total transaction of $8,339,882.32. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 246,522 shares in the company, valued at approximately $49,629,809.04. This represents a 14.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last quarter, insiders sold 742,469 shares of company stock worth $145,999,322. 1.42% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Vistra Trading Up 3.1%

NYSE VST opened at $173.44 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.74, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 0.99. The firm has a market cap of $58.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 62.61, a PEG ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 1.39. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $184.11 and a 200-day simple moving average of $190.31. Vistra Corp. has a one year low of $90.51 and a one year high of $219.82.

Vistra (NYSE:VST) last released its earnings results on Friday, November 7th. The company reported $1.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.78 by ($0.03). Vistra had a return on equity of 64.04% and a net margin of 6.70%.The business had revenue of $4.97 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.60 billion. Equities research analysts anticipate that Vistra Corp. will post 7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 22nd will be paid a $0.227 dividend. This represents a $0.91 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 22nd. This is a boost from Vistra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. Vistra’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 32.49%.

About Vistra

Vistra Corp., together with its subsidiaries, operates as an integrated retail electricity and power generation company. The company operates through six segments: Retail, Texas, East, West, Sunset, and Asset Closure. It retails electricity and natural gas to residential, commercial, and industrial customers across states in the United States and the District of Columbia.