SPX Gestao de Recursos Ltda Invests $9.88 Million in Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST)

SPX Gestao de Recursos Ltda purchased a new position in Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST - Free Report) in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 83,333 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $9,878,000. Vistra makes up 1.3% of SPX Gestao de Recursos Ltda's holdings, making the stock its 18th largest holding.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of VST. Retirement Systems of Alabama lifted its holdings in shares of Vistra by 9.6% in the third quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama now owns 78,965 shares of the company's stock worth $9,361,000 after buying an additional 6,920 shares in the last quarter. Oddo BHF Asset Management Sas bought a new stake in Vistra in the 3rd quarter valued at $2,179,000. Blankinship & Foster LLC purchased a new stake in Vistra in the 3rd quarter worth $2,353,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new position in shares of Vistra during the 3rd quarter valued at about $263,000. Finally, World Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Vistra during the third quarter valued at about $351,000. 90.88% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Vistra

In other news, Director Scott B. Helm sold 20,000 shares of Vistra stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $139.77, for a total transaction of $2,795,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 343,350 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $47,990,029.50. The trade was a 5.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Scott A. Hudson sold 115,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 254,932 shares in the company, valued at approximately $41,849,637.12. This trade represents a 31.09 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over 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 company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. Guggenheim increased their price target on Vistra from $133.00 to $177.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. assumed coverage on Vistra in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. They set an "overweight" rating and a $178.00 target price for the company. BNP Paribas assumed coverage on shares of Vistra in a research report on Monday, October 14th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $231.00 price target on the stock. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on shares of Vistra from $146.00 to $147.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 29th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on shares of Vistra from $105.00 to $141.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $149.10.

Vistra Trading Down 0.1 %

Shares of VST traded down $0.14 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $144.94. The stock had a trading volume of 4,011,722 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,782,373. The stock's 50 day moving average is $139.60 and its 200 day moving average is $106.15. The firm has a market cap of $49.31 billion, a PE ratio of 27.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.68, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 0.99. Vistra Corp. has a 1 year low of $37.38 and a 1 year high of $168.67.

Vistra announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback plan on Thursday, November 7th that permits the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to purchase up to 2.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are often an indication that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 20th will be given a dividend of $0.221 per share. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.61%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 20th. This is a positive change from Vistra's previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. Vistra's payout ratio is 16.42%.

About Vistra

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.