Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) Shares Sold by Clearbridge Investments LLC

Clearbridge Investments LLC lessened its position in shares of Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) by 42.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,150,834 shares of the company’s stock after selling 857,381 shares during the period. Clearbridge Investments LLC owned about 0.34% of Vistra worth $158,665,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of VST. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in Vistra by 6.8% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 16,355,255 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,938,752,000 after buying an additional 1,037,402 shares during the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its position in shares of Vistra by 36.0% during the 3rd quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 3,781,908 shares of the company’s stock worth $448,320,000 after acquiring an additional 1,000,307 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Vistra during the fourth quarter worth approximately $409,087,000. Appaloosa LP boosted its holdings in Vistra by 112.5% in the fourth quarter. Appaloosa LP now owns 2,700,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $372,249,000 after purchasing an additional 1,429,612 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Assetmark Inc. increased its stake in Vistra by 12.3% in the fourth quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 1,779,846 shares of the company’s stock valued at $245,387,000 after purchasing an additional 194,404 shares during the last quarter. 90.88% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director John William Pitesa acquired 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was bought at an average price of $126.75 per share, with a total value of $190,125.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 3,467 shares in the company, valued at $439,442.25. The trade was a 76.26 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Paul M. Barbas sold 24,136 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.19, for a total transaction of $2,997,449.84. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 51,063 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,341,513.97. This represents a 32.10 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.42% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Vistra Stock Performance

NYSE:VST opened at $119.05 on Monday. 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 company has a market capitalization of $40.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 1.21. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $147.39 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $140.83. Vistra Corp. has a twelve month low of $64.26 and a twelve month high of $199.84.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced 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 represents a $0.89 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.75%. This is a positive change from Vistra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 20th. Vistra’s dividend payout ratio is 12.62%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Bank of America upgraded shares of 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 report on Tuesday, March 4th. Daiwa America raised shares of Vistra to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Evercore ISI assumed coverage on Vistra in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. They set an “outperform” rating and a $202.00 price objective on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Vistra from $203.00 to $186.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on shares of Vistra from $151.00 to $191.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $163.50.

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.