SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC Reduces Position in Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST)

SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC lessened its holdings in shares of Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) by 10.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,723 shares of the company’s stock after selling 562 shares during the quarter. SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Vistra were worth $651,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in Vistra by 6.8% in 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 period. Lone Pine Capital LLC lifted its position in shares of Vistra by 6.6% during the second quarter. Lone Pine Capital LLC now owns 6,838,007 shares of the company’s stock worth $587,932,000 after acquiring an additional 425,126 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its holdings in shares of Vistra by 51.1% in the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 3,826,631 shares of the company’s stock worth $453,609,000 after acquiring an additional 1,293,974 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC grew its position in shares of Vistra by 36.0% in the third quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 3,781,908 shares of the company’s stock valued at $448,320,000 after purchasing an additional 1,000,307 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Castle Hook Partners LP raised its stake in shares of Vistra by 33.5% during the 3rd quarter. Castle Hook Partners LP now owns 2,610,273 shares of the company’s stock valued at $309,422,000 after purchasing an additional 654,568 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.88% of the company’s stock.

Vistra Stock Performance

NYSE VST opened at $173.89 on Friday. Vistra Corp. has a 52-week low of $39.08 and a 52-week high of $178.40. The company has a fifty day moving average of $151.31 and a 200-day moving average of $116.21. The company has a market capitalization of $59.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.44, a P/E/G ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.68, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a current ratio of 1.11.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 20th were paid a dividend of $0.221 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 20th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.51%. This is a positive change from Vistra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. Vistra’s payout ratio is 16.42%.

Vistra declared that its board has initiated a stock repurchase program on Thursday, November 7th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to purchase up to 2.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have commented on VST shares. UBS Group lifted their target price on Vistra from $161.00 to $174.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 3rd. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on shares of Vistra from $146.00 to $147.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 29th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Vistra from $135.00 to $169.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on shares of Vistra from $105.00 to $141.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on Vistra from $99.00 to $137.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 24th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $151.50.

Insider Activity

In other Vistra news, EVP Stephen J. Muscato sold 207,100 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $161.34, for a total transaction of $33,413,514.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 318,287 shares in the company, valued at $51,352,424.58. This represents a 39.42 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Scott B. Helm sold 20,000 shares of the firm’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 transaction, the director now directly owns 343,350 shares in the company, valued at $47,990,029.50. This trade represents a 5.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 342,100 shares of company stock worth $55,087,314. 1.42% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.