Vistra Corp. $VST Shares Acquired by Korea Investment CORP

Korea Investment CORP boosted its position in Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) by 6.3% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 503,121 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 29,646 shares during the period. Korea Investment CORP owned approximately 0.15% of Vistra worth $97,510,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in VST. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its stake in shares of Vistra by 4.4% in the second quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 6,175,553 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,196,884,000 after buying an additional 258,983 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in Vistra by 0.3% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 4,190,462 shares of the company’s stock valued at $492,102,000 after acquiring an additional 11,386 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp boosted its position in shares of Vistra by 1.9% during the 1st 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 in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Vistra by 1.7% during the 2nd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,099,120 shares of the company’s stock worth $406,830,000 after purchasing an additional 35,444 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nuveen LLC acquired a new position in shares of Vistra during the 1st quarter worth $209,149,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.88% of the company’s stock.

Vistra Stock Up 3.7%

Shares of NYSE:VST opened at $177.14 on Thursday. Vistra Corp. has a 52-week low of $90.51 and a 52-week high of $219.82. The company has a market capitalization of $60.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 63.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.74. The company has a 50 day moving average of $193.22 and a two-hundred day moving average of $188.63.

Vistra (NYSE:VST) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, November 7th. The company reported $1.75 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.78 by ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $4.97 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.60 billion. Vistra had a net margin of 6.70% and a return on equity of 64.04%. As a group, analysts forecast that Vistra Corp. will post 7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Vistra Increases Dividend

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently commented on the stock. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on shares of Vistra from $236.00 to $245.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 7th. Daiwa Capital Markets upgraded Vistra from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $250.00 target price on the stock in a report on Wednesday, September 17th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $225.00 price target on shares of Vistra in a report on Thursday, November 20th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “hold” rating and issued a $230.00 price objective (down previously from $241.00) on shares of Vistra in a research report on Monday, September 22nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Vistra in a report on Tuesday. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have given a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $233.20.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Vistra news, EVP Stephanie Zapata Moore sold 8,219 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $173.35, for a total transaction of $1,424,763.65. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 79,854 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,842,690.90. This trade represents a 9.33% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Carrie Lee Kirby sold 58,275 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $174.75, for a total transaction of $10,183,556.25. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 218,239 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $38,137,265.25. The trade was a 21.07% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 868,339 shares of company stock valued at $173,242,584 over the last 90 days. 1.42% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Vistra Company Profile

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.