Foster & Motley Inc. Reduces Holdings in Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST)

Foster & Motley Inc. reduced its holdings in shares of Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) by 28.5% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 2,514 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,000 shares during the period. Foster & Motley Inc.’s holdings in Vistra were worth $298,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. purchased a new position in Vistra during the 3rd quarter valued at about $30,000. CVA Family Office LLC boosted its stake in shares of Vistra by 1,505.9% during the 3rd quarter. CVA Family Office LLC now owns 273 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 256 shares during the last quarter. Redwood Wealth Management Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Vistra in the second quarter worth approximately $26,000. ORG Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Vistra in the third quarter worth approximately $40,000. Finally, Fortitude Family Office LLC boosted its position in shares of Vistra by 125.0% in the third quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 360 shares of the company’s stock worth $43,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. 90.88% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently issued reports on VST. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Vistra from $110.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. BNP Paribas began coverage on shares of Vistra in a research report on Monday, October 14th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $231.00 target price on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on shares of Vistra from $105.00 to $141.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on shares of Vistra from $99.00 to $137.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 24th. Finally, Guggenheim lifted their price target on shares of Vistra from $133.00 to $177.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $145.40.

Vistra Trading Up 7.6 %

VST opened at $135.73 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $46.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 99.80 and a beta of 1.09. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $111.92 and its 200-day moving average is $94.28. Vistra Corp. has a 52-week low of $34.24 and a 52-week high of $143.87. The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.89.

Vistra (NYSE:VST) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 8th. The company reported $0.90 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.59 by ($0.69). The firm had revenue of $3.85 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.04 billion. Vistra had a net margin of 4.61% and a return on equity of 21.05%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.03 EPS. Analysts expect that Vistra Corp. will post 4.02 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 20th will be paid a dividend of $0.221 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 20th. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.65%. This is a positive change from Vistra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. Vistra’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 64.71%.

Vistra announced that its board has initiated a share repurchase plan on Thursday, November 7th that permits the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to reacquire up to 2.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

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.