Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) Shares Purchased by Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board

Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board grew its holdings in shares of Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) by 729.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 19,017 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 16,723 shares during the quarter. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board’s holdings in Vistra were worth $2,622,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Vistra in the fourth quarter valued at about $409,087,000. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its stake in Vistra by 63.6% during the fourth quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 6,260,363 shares of the company’s stock valued at $863,116,000 after buying an additional 2,433,732 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in Vistra in the 4th quarter worth approximately $237,441,000. Appaloosa LP raised its stake in shares of Vistra by 112.5% during the 4th quarter. Appaloosa LP now owns 2,700,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $372,249,000 after purchasing an additional 1,429,612 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Pictet Asset Management Holding SA boosted its holdings in Vistra by 61.1% in the fourth quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 1,346,450 shares of the company’s stock worth $185,635,000 after purchasing an additional 510,465 shares in the last quarter. 90.88% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

Vistra Stock Performance

Shares of Vistra stock opened at $112.37 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $38.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.96, a P/E/G ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 1.21. Vistra Corp. has a twelve month low of $64.26 and a twelve month high of $199.84. The company’s fifty day moving average is $132.00 and its 200 day moving average is $141.50. The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.68.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 20th were given a dividend of $0.2235 per share. This represents a $0.89 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.80%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 20th. This is an increase from Vistra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. Vistra’s dividend payout ratio is currently 12.62%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have issued reports on VST shares. Evercore ISI began coverage on Vistra in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $202.00 target price on the stock. Daiwa Capital Markets began coverage on Vistra in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $120.00 price target on the stock. Bank of America upgraded shares of Vistra from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and dropped their target price for the company from $164.00 to $152.00 in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on shares of Vistra in a research report on Friday, April 4th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $134.00 price target on the stock. Finally, BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on Vistra from $151.00 to $191.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Vistra presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $159.69.

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.