Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) Stock Position Lifted by Seelaus Asset Management LLC

Seelaus Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) by 8.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,225 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 250 shares during the quarter. Seelaus Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Vistra were worth $445,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB increased its position in Vistra by 191.0% in the 4th quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 6,460 shares of the company’s stock worth $891,000 after purchasing an additional 4,240 shares during the last quarter. Conning Inc. acquired a new position in Vistra in the fourth quarter worth approximately $245,000. Fairvoy Private Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Vistra in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,534,000. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd increased its stake in shares of Vistra by 9.3% during the 4th quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd now owns 40,088 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,527,000 after purchasing an additional 3,403 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Strategic Financial Concepts LLC acquired a new position in shares of Vistra during the 4th quarter worth $3,785,000. 90.88% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Scott B. Helm sold 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $139.77, for a total value of $2,795,400.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 343,350 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $47,990,029.50. The trade was a 5.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Stephen J. Muscato sold 207,100 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $161.34, for a total transaction of $33,413,514.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 318,287 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $51,352,424.58. This represents a 39.42 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 342,100 shares of company stock worth $55,087,314. Company insiders own 1.42% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

Vistra Price Performance

Shares of Vistra stock opened at $166.71 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $157.42 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $125.83. Vistra Corp. has a fifty-two week low of $42.22 and a fifty-two week high of $199.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.68, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 0.99. The company has a market cap of $56.72 billion, a PE ratio of 31.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.17 and a beta of 1.22.

Vistra (NYSE:VST) last released its earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The company reported $5.25 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.24 by $4.01. The business had revenue of $6.29 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.96 billion. Vistra had a return on equity of 57.63% and a net margin of 12.51%. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.25 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Vistra Corp. will post 7 EPS for the current year.

Vistra announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback plan on Thursday, November 7th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to reacquire up to 2.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

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.