Paul M. Barbas Sells 24,136 Shares of Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) Stock

Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) Director Paul M. Barbas sold 24,136 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.19, for a total value of $2,997,449.84. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 51,063 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,341,513.97. The trade was a 32.10 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website.

Vistra Stock Up 5.4 %

Shares of VST opened at $124.42 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.68. Vistra Corp. has a 12 month low of $60.73 and a 12 month high of $199.84. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $155.96 and its two-hundred day moving average is $136.40. The firm has a market cap of $42.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.21, a PEG ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 1.21.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 20th will be issued a $0.2235 dividend. This is a positive change from Vistra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. This represents a $0.89 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.72%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 20th. Vistra’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 12.62%.

Institutional Trading of Vistra

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of VST. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Vistra in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $409,087,000. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its holdings in Vistra by 63.6% in the fourth quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 6,260,363 shares of the company’s stock valued at $863,116,000 after purchasing an additional 2,433,732 shares during the period. Capital International Investors acquired a new stake in shares of Vistra in the fourth quarter worth approximately $286,414,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Vistra in the fourth quarter worth approximately $237,441,000. Finally, Appaloosa LP increased its position in shares of Vistra by 112.5% during the fourth quarter. Appaloosa LP now owns 2,700,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $372,249,000 after purchasing an additional 1,429,612 shares in the last quarter. 90.88% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

VST has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Evercore ISI initiated coverage on Vistra in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $202.00 price objective for the company. Bank of America upgraded Vistra from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $164.00 to $152.00 in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Vistra from $135.00 to $169.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on Vistra from $151.00 to $191.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Daiwa Capital Markets initiated coverage on Vistra in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $120.00 price target for the company. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $162.83.

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.