Umpqua Bank Decreases Stake in Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST)

Umpqua Bank reduced its position in Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) by 4.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 3,630 shares of the company’s stock after selling 150 shares during the period. Umpqua Bank’s holdings in Vistra were worth $500,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of Vistra during the fourth quarter worth about $237,441,000. Appaloosa LP lifted its holdings in Vistra by 112.5% in the fourth quarter. Appaloosa LP now owns 2,700,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $372,249,000 after acquiring an additional 1,429,612 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its holdings in 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 last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in Vistra by 6.8% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 16,355,255 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,938,752,000 after acquiring an additional 1,037,402 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC lifted its holdings in Vistra by 36.0% in the third quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 3,781,908 shares of the company’s stock worth $448,320,000 after acquiring an additional 1,000,307 shares during the last quarter. 90.88% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Vistra news, Director Paul M. Barbas sold 24,136 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the director now owns 51,063 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,341,513.97. The trade was a 32.10 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director John William Pitesa bought 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $126.75 per share, with a total value of $190,125.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 3,467 shares in the company, valued at approximately $439,442.25. The trade was a 76.26 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 1.42% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Vistra Trading Down 0.9 %

NYSE VST opened at $130.75 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $151.74 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $138.21. 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 Corp. has a twelve month low of $64.26 and a twelve month high of $199.84. The stock has a market cap of $44.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.39, a PEG ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 1.21.

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 issued 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 0.68%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 20th. Vistra’s payout ratio is currently 12.62%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have commented on VST. Daiwa Capital Markets assumed coverage on shares of Vistra in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $120.00 price target on the stock. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on Vistra from $151.00 to $191.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Morgan Stanley boosted 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. Evercore ISI assumed coverage on Vistra in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. They set an “outperform” rating and a $202.00 price objective for the company. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price objective on Vistra from $161.00 to $174.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $162.83.

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.