Foster & Motley Inc. Cuts Position in Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST)

Foster & Motley Inc. reduced its stake in shares of Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) by 26.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,841 shares of the company’s stock after selling 673 shares during the period. Foster & Motley Inc.’s holdings in Vistra were worth $254,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Field & Main Bank purchased a new stake in Vistra during the fourth quarter worth about $203,000. Strategic Blueprint LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Vistra during the 4th quarter worth approximately $288,000. Hantz Financial Services Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Vistra by 20.9% in the 4th quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 1,963 shares of the company’s stock worth $271,000 after acquiring an additional 340 shares during the period. Forsta AP Fonden increased its stake in Vistra by 92.4% in the 4th quarter. Forsta AP Fonden now owns 85,600 shares of the company’s stock valued at $11,802,000 after purchasing an additional 41,100 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Patton Fund Management Inc. acquired a new position in Vistra during the fourth quarter worth $3,701,000. 90.88% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Vistra Stock Down 4.7 %

VST stock opened at $168.08 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $156.24 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $122.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.68, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a current ratio of 1.11. The stock has a market capitalization of $57.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.36, a PEG ratio of 1.05 and a beta of 1.21. Vistra Corp. has a one year low of $40.78 and a one year high of $199.84.

Vistra (NYSE:VST) last released its earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The company reported $5.25 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.24 by $4.01. Vistra had a return on equity of 57.63% and a net margin of 12.51%. The firm had revenue of $6.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.96 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.25 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Vistra Corp. will post 7 EPS for the current year.

Vistra declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan on Thursday, November 7th that allows the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to purchase up to 2.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Vistra

In related news, Director Scott B. Helm sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $139.77, for a total value of $2,795,400.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 343,350 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $47,990,029.50. This trade represents a 5.50 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Scott A. Hudson sold 115,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $164.16, for a total value of $18,878,400.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 254,932 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $41,849,637.12. This trade represents a 31.09 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 342,100 shares of company stock worth $55,087,314 in the last three months. Company insiders own 1.42% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have weighed in on VST. Evercore ISI began coverage on Vistra in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $202.00 target price on the stock. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Vistra from $161.00 to $174.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. initiated coverage on shares of Vistra in a report on Thursday, October 17th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $178.00 price target on the stock. BNP Paribas started coverage on shares of Vistra in a research note on Monday, October 14th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $231.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Bank of America assumed coverage on Vistra in a research note on Monday, January 27th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $206.00 target price on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $171.64.

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.