New York State Common Retirement Fund Has $19.80 Million Stock Holdings in Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST)

New York State Common Retirement Fund trimmed its stake in shares of Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) by 8.8% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 143,625 shares of the company’s stock after selling 13,940 shares during the quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund’s holdings in Vistra were worth $19,802,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Creative Planning raised its holdings in Vistra by 33.3% during the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 31,052 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,681,000 after buying an additional 7,753 shares during the period. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Vistra in the third quarter worth approximately $216,000. Signaturefd LLC raised its holdings in shares of Vistra by 12.6% during the third quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 2,604 shares of the company’s stock valued at $309,000 after acquiring an additional 292 shares during the period. Private Advisor Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Vistra by 4.8% in the 3rd quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 8,366 shares of the company’s stock valued at $992,000 after acquiring an additional 381 shares in the last quarter. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in Vistra by 14,657.2% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 420,580 shares of the company’s stock worth $49,856,000 after purchasing an additional 417,730 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.88% of the company’s stock.

Vistra Stock Down 7.8 %

VST stock opened at $150.51 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $51.21 billion, a PE ratio of 28.08, a PEG ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 1.22. Vistra Corp. has a 1 year low of $46.18 and a 1 year high of $199.84. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $160.19 and a 200 day simple moving average of $132.33. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.68.

Vistra declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback plan on Thursday, November 7th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to reacquire up to 2.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 20th will be paid a dividend of $0.2235 per share. This represents a $0.89 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.59%. This is an increase from Vistra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. Vistra’s dividend payout ratio is 16.60%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Scott A. Hudson sold 115,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $164.16, for a total value of $18,878,400.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 254,932 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $41,849,637.12. This trade represents a 31.09 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Scott B. Helm sold 20,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 10th. The stock was 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $47,990,029.50. This represents a 5.50 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.42% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have issued reports on VST shares. Evercore ISI started coverage on shares of Vistra in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. They set an “outperform” rating and a $202.00 target price on the stock. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on Vistra from $151.00 to $191.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Vistra from $135.00 to $169.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. Bank of America started coverage on Vistra in a report on Monday, January 27th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $206.00 target price on the stock. Finally, UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Vistra from $161.00 to $174.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $171.64.

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.