Entropy Technologies LP Trims Stock Position in Vistra Corp. $VST

Entropy Technologies LP lessened its position in shares of Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) by 16.9% during the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 56,914 shares of the company’s stock after selling 11,534 shares during the period. Entropy Technologies LP’s holdings in Vistra were worth $8,556,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Fideuram Intesa Sanpaolo Private Banking S.P.A. purchased a new position in shares of Vistra during the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Mcguire Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Vistra in the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Kemnay Advisory Services Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Vistra in the fourth quarter worth $30,000. Strive Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in Vistra during the fourth quarter valued at $33,000. Finally, Salomon & Ludwin LLC boosted its stake in Vistra by 74.8% during the fourth quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 215 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 92 shares during the period. 90.88% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have weighed in on VST. Raymond James Financial set a $208.00 target price on Vistra in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Seaport Research Partners reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $230.00 price target on shares of Vistra in a research report on Monday, June 15th. Zacks Research raised Vistra from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, July 20th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a $190.00 price objective on shares of Vistra in a research report on Thursday, May 21st. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein set a $187.00 target price on shares of Vistra and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 16th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $230.62.

Insider Transactions at Vistra

In other Vistra news, CAO Margaret Montemayor sold 4,600 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $160.00, for a total transaction of $736,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 9,760 shares in the company, valued at $1,561,600. This trade represents a 32.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Paul M. Barbas sold 244 shares of Vistra stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $153.00, for a total transaction of $37,332.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 53,006 shares in the company, valued at $8,109,918. This trade represents a 0.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold 41,588 shares of company stock worth $6,739,227 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.92% of the company’s stock.

Vistra Trading Down 3.5%

NYSE VST opened at $163.15 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.51. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $156.05 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $158.47. Vistra Corp. has a twelve month low of $132.66 and a twelve month high of $219.82. The company has a market capitalization of $55.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.33 and a beta of 1.40.

Vistra (NYSE:VST) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $2.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.32 by $1.55. The firm had revenue of $5.64 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.22 billion. Vistra had a return on equity of 105.64% and a net margin of 11.52%. Research analysts forecast that Vistra Corp. will post 9.52 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 22nd were paid a $0.229 dividend. This is an increase from Vistra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. This represents a $0.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 22nd. Vistra’s payout ratio is currently 15.41%.

About Vistra

Vistra (NYSE: VST) is an integrated power company that develops, owns and operates electricity generation and retail businesses in the United States. The company’s operations span wholesale power production—through a diversified fleet of thermal and lower‑carbon generation assets—and retail electricity supply to residential, commercial and industrial customers. Vistra serves organized wholesale markets and competitive retail markets, with a notable presence in Texas and other regional U.S. power markets.

Vistra’s core activities include the ownership and operation of generation facilities, the commercial dispatch and optimization of those assets into wholesale markets, and the sale of electricity and related services to end-use customers through its retail brands.