Swiss National Bank Buys 1,400 Shares of Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST)

Swiss National Bank lifted its holdings in Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) by 0.1% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,031,473 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,400 shares during the quarter. Swiss National Bank’s holdings in Vistra were worth $122,271,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Empire Life Investments Inc. purchased a new position in Vistra during the third quarter worth $23,028,000. Terra Nova Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Vistra during the third quarter worth $842,000. Czech National Bank boosted its stake in Vistra by 12.4% during the third quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 69,987 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,296,000 after buying an additional 7,747 shares during the period. Viking Fund Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Vistra during the third quarter worth $1,185,000. Finally, Atria Investments Inc bought a new stake in shares of Vistra during the first quarter worth $1,675,000. 90.88% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently weighed in on VST. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on Vistra from $105.00 to $141.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. Guggenheim lifted their target price on Vistra from $133.00 to $177.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Vistra from $110.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on Vistra from $99.00 to $137.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 24th. Finally, BNP Paribas initiated coverage on Vistra in a research report on Monday, October 14th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $231.00 target price for the company. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $145.40.

Vistra Price Performance

Shares of NYSE VST opened at $146.64 on Tuesday. Vistra Corp. has a fifty-two week low of $34.25 and a fifty-two week high of $152.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.68, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 1.11. The company has a market cap of $49.89 billion, a PE ratio of 27.36 and a beta of 1.09. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $120.95 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $97.99.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 20th will be paid a dividend of $0.221 per share. This is a positive change from Vistra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 20th. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.60%. Vistra’s dividend payout ratio is presently 16.42%.

Vistra declared that its board has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Thursday, November 7th that permits the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to purchase up to 2.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

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.