NewEdge Advisors LLC Has $14.90 Million Stock Position in Vistra Corp. $VST

NewEdge Advisors LLC lessened its holdings in shares of Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) by 6.8% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 93,940 shares of the company’s stock after selling 6,801 shares during the period. NewEdge Advisors LLC’s holdings in Vistra were worth $14,902,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. IFP Advisors Inc boosted its holdings in Vistra by 6.0% during the second quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 72,197 shares of the company’s stock worth $11,453,000 after buying an additional 4,066 shares during the last quarter. BayBridge Capital Group LLC boosted its position in shares of Vistra by 70.4% during the second quarter. BayBridge Capital Group LLC now owns 3,628 shares of the company’s stock worth $576,000 after purchasing an additional 1,499 shares in the last quarter. Hudock Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Vistra in the 2nd quarter valued at $254,000. Arizona State Retirement System lifted its holdings in Vistra by 1.1% during the second quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 93,941 shares of the company’s stock worth $14,902,000 after acquiring an additional 1,057 shares in the last quarter. Finally, West Family Investments Inc. acquired a new position in Vistra in the second quarter valued at about $217,000. 90.88% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Vistra

In related news, Director Paul M. Barbas sold 244 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $153.00, for a total transaction of $37,332.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 53,006 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,109,918. This represents a 0.46% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO James Burke bought 4,465 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 1st. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $135.25 per share, with a total value of $603,891.25. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 1,146,352 shares in the company, valued at $155,044,108. The trade was a 0.39% increase in their position. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 76,188 shares of company stock valued at $11,889,820. Insiders own 0.92% of the company’s stock.

Vistra Stock Performance

NYSE VST opened at $148.12 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $49.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.02 and a beta of 1.40. Vistra Corp. has a twelve month low of $132.66 and a twelve month high of $219.82. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $148.81 and a 200 day simple moving average of $154.04. The company has a quick ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.87.

Vistra (NYSE:VST) last issued its earnings results on Friday, August 7th. The company reported $0.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.61 by ($0.85). Vistra had a return on equity of 108.68% and a net margin of 11.55%.The firm had revenue of $4.02 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.46 billion. Sell-side analysts expect that Vistra Corp. will post 9.21 EPS for the current year.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 21st will be paid a dividend of $0.23 per share. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.6%. 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 payout ratio is 15.54%.

Trending Headlines about Vistra

Here are the key news stories impacting Vistra this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Vistra priced $850 million of Series A and $650 million of Series B junior subordinated notes due 2057. Proceeds will support general corporate purposes and could be used to redeem outstanding preferred stock, potentially improving the capital structure. Vistra Prices Registered Offering of $1.5 Billion of Junior Subordinated Notes
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts remain optimistic about Vistra’s growth prospects. Hedging, long-term power contracts, its diversified generation portfolio and rising electricity demand from data centers, industrial activity and electrification support earnings visibility. The Cogentrix acquisition and long-term nuclear agreements with Meta and Amazon Web Services are additional potential catalysts. Vistra: Cogentrix and Meta Can Offset a Softer ERCOT Outlook
• Positive Sentiment: Wall Street’s consensus view remains favorable, with a Moderate Buy rating and price targets generally well above the recent trading range. Commentators cite improving EBITDA expectations and potential upside to management’s outlook. Vistra Receives Consensus Recommendation of Moderate Buy
• Neutral Sentiment: Executive Vice President Scott Hudson sold 44,444 shares worth approximately $6.75 million. Because the transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan, it is a limited signal of management’s current outlook. SEC Insider Transaction Filing
• Negative Sentiment: The notes increase Vistra’s financing obligations while the company already has substantial leverage, reflected in a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.87. Investors may also be concerned about softer ERCOT conditions and the additional leverage associated with the Cogentrix acquisition. VST Stock Outperforms Industry in the Past Three Months

Analysts Set New Price Targets

VST has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. BNP Paribas Exane set a $255.00 price objective on shares of Vistra in a report on Wednesday, August 19th. Seaport Research Partners reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $230.00 price objective on shares of Vistra in a report on Monday, June 15th. Wells Fargo & Company restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $212.00 target price on shares of Vistra in a research note on Monday, August 10th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Vistra from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 13th. Finally, TD Cowen dropped their target price on Vistra from $222.00 to $221.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, August 19th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Vistra presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $223.53.

Vistra Company Profile

Vistra Corp. is an integrated energy company headquartered in Irving, Texas. The company operates electricity generation and retail energy businesses, serving residential, commercial, industrial and wholesale customers primarily across the United States.

Vistra’s generation portfolio includes natural gas, nuclear, coal, solar and battery energy storage facilities. Through its retail operations, the company provides electricity, natural gas and renewable energy plans under brands that include TXU Energy, Dynegy, Homefield Energy and Ambit Energy.

The company was established in 2016 following the separation of Energy Future Holdings’ competitive energy businesses.