River Road Asset Management LLC Reduces Stock Position in Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST)

River Road Asset Management LLC cut its holdings in shares of Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) by 94.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 21,097 shares of the company’s stock after selling 333,212 shares during the quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Vistra were worth $2,909,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of VST. SPX Gestao de Recursos Ltda raised its position in shares of Vistra by 57.6% in the 4th quarter. SPX Gestao de Recursos Ltda now owns 131,333 shares of the company’s stock worth $18,107,000 after buying an additional 48,000 shares during the period. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI increased its stake in Vistra by 50.7% during the fourth quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI now owns 14,528 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,003,000 after acquiring an additional 4,888 shares during the last quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance raised its holdings in shares of Vistra by 14.2% in the 4th quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance now owns 58,470 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,061,000 after purchasing an additional 7,261 shares during the period. Paragon Private Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Vistra in the 4th quarter valued at about $202,000. Finally, Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Vistra during the 4th quarter worth about $229,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.88% of the company’s stock.

Vistra Trading Up 5.4 %

Shares of VST opened at $114.40 on Wednesday. Vistra Corp. has a one year low of $58.00 and a one year high of $199.84. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $156.91 and a 200 day moving average price of $136.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.68, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a current ratio of 1.11. The company has a market capitalization of $38.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.34, a P/E/G ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 1.21.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced 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 is a boost from Vistra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. This represents a $0.89 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.78%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 20th. Vistra’s dividend payout ratio is 12.62%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Evercore ISI initiated coverage on shares of Vistra in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. They set an “outperform” rating and a $202.00 price target on the stock. Daiwa America upgraded shares of Vistra to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Daiwa Capital Markets started coverage on Vistra in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $120.00 price target for the company. UBS Group boosted their price objective on Vistra from $161.00 to $174.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. Finally, Bank of America upgraded Vistra from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lowered their target price for the company from $164.00 to $152.00 in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Vistra currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $162.83.

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.