Loomis Sayles & Co. L P Sells 58,935 Shares of Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST)

Loomis Sayles & Co. L P reduced its holdings in Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) by 16.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 305,753 shares of the company’s stock after selling 58,935 shares during the period. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P’s holdings in Vistra were worth $36,244,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. DRW Securities LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Vistra in the third quarter valued at about $4,860,000. Independent Advisor Alliance grew its stake in Vistra by 345.3% in the third quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance now owns 51,209 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,070,000 after purchasing an additional 39,708 shares in the last quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Vistra in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $222,000. Douglass Winthrop Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Vistra by 0.9% in the third quarter. Douglass Winthrop Advisors LLC now owns 11,335 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,344,000 after buying an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group Inc. increased its holdings in Vistra by 11.4% during the third quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 58,387 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,921,000 after buying an additional 5,997 shares during the last quarter. 90.88% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Vistra Stock Performance

NYSE VST opened at $154.14 on Tuesday. Vistra Corp. has a 12-month low of $34.70 and a 12-month high of $168.67. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $127.24 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $100.11. The company has a market capitalization of $52.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.76, a P/E/G ratio of 2.08 and a beta of 1.09. 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 announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback plan on Thursday, November 7th that allows the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to buy up to 2.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Investors of record on Friday, December 20th will be given 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 yield of 0.57%. This is an increase from Vistra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. Vistra’s dividend payout ratio is currently 16.42%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have commented on VST shares. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on shares of Vistra from $105.00 to $141.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Vistra from $135.00 to $169.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday. Guggenheim upped their price objective on shares of Vistra from $133.00 to $177.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. initiated coverage on shares of Vistra in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $178.00 target price for the company. Finally, BNP Paribas started coverage on shares of Vistra in a research note on Monday, October 14th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $231.00 price target on the stock. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat, Vistra currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $149.10.

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.