Public Sector Pension Investment Board Grows Stake in Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST)

Public Sector Pension Investment Board lifted its stake in Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) by 730.9% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 460,072 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 404,700 shares during the quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board’s holdings in Vistra were worth $54,537,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of VST. Redwood Wealth Management Group LLC acquired a new position in Vistra during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Vistra during the third quarter worth $30,000. New Covenant Trust Company N.A. purchased a new position in shares of Vistra in the first quarter valued at $32,000. CVA Family Office LLC boosted its stake in shares of Vistra by 1,505.9% in the third quarter. CVA Family Office LLC now owns 273 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 256 shares during the period. Finally, EdgeRock Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Vistra during the 2nd quarter valued at $34,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.88% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Stephen J. Muscato sold 207,100 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $161.34, for a total transaction of $33,413,514.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 318,287 shares in the company, valued at $51,352,424.58. This represents a 39.42 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Scott A. Hudson sold 115,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $164.16, for a total transaction of $18,878,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 254,932 shares in the company, valued at $41,849,637.12. This represents a 31.09 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.42% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Vistra Price Performance

Shares of VST opened at $154.54 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.68. The firm has a market cap of $52.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.83, a PEG ratio of 1.98 and a beta of 1.09. Vistra Corp. has a 52 week low of $34.88 and a 52 week high of $168.67. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $129.97 and a 200-day moving average of $101.03.

Vistra declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback program on Thursday, November 7th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to repurchase up to 2.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 20th will be paid a dividend of $0.221 per share. This is a positive change from Vistra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 20th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.57%. Vistra’s payout ratio is presently 16.42%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have commented on VST shares. BNP Paribas began coverage on shares of Vistra in a report on Monday, October 14th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $231.00 price objective on the stock. UBS Group reduced their price target on Vistra from $157.00 to $150.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on Vistra from $146.00 to $147.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 29th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on Vistra from $105.00 to $141.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Vistra from $135.00 to $169.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $149.10.

Vistra 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.