Bank of Nova Scotia Raises Stock Position in Vistra Corp. $VST

Bank of Nova Scotia lifted its holdings in shares of Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) by 16.7% during the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 137,005 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 19,647 shares during the period. Bank of Nova Scotia’s holdings in Vistra were worth $20,597,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Vistra in the 4th quarter valued at $746,729,000. Capital World Investors acquired a new position in shares of Vistra during the fourth quarter worth about $574,499,000. Rubric Capital Management LP acquired a new position in shares of Vistra during the fourth quarter worth about $322,660,000. Amundi boosted its position in shares of Vistra by 72.3% in the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 1,949,568 shares of the company’s stock worth $314,524,000 after buying an additional 817,876 shares during the period. Finally, Corient Private Wealth LLC grew its stake in shares of Vistra by 585.0% in the fourth quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 907,611 shares of the company’s stock valued at $146,425,000 after buying an additional 775,104 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.88% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Vistra

In other news, Director Paul M. Barbas sold 244 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $153.00, for a total value of $37,332.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 53,006 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,109,918. This represents a 0.46% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director John R. Sult sold 6,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $170.00, for a total transaction of $1,105,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 70,714 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,021,380. This trade represents a 8.42% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold a total of 41,588 shares of company stock worth $6,739,227 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.92% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a $190.00 price target on shares of Vistra in a report on Thursday, May 21st. TD Cowen decreased their target price on shares of Vistra from $253.00 to $230.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Raymond James Financial set a $208.00 price target on shares of Vistra in a report on Monday, April 27th. Seaport Research Partners restated a “buy” rating and set a $230.00 price objective on shares of Vistra in a report on Monday, June 15th. Finally, Weiss Ratings cut shares of Vistra from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have given a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $230.62.

Vistra Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:VST opened at $163.15 on Friday. Vistra Corp. has a 52 week low of $132.66 and a 52 week high of $219.82. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.51. The firm has a market capitalization of $55.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.33 and a beta of 1.40. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $156.05 and its two-hundred day moving average is $158.47.

Vistra (NYSE:VST) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $2.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.32 by $1.55. The company had revenue of $5.64 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.22 billion. Vistra had a return on equity of 105.64% and a net margin of 11.52%. Analysts anticipate that Vistra Corp. will post 9.52 earnings per share for the current year.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Investors of record on Monday, June 22nd were given a $0.229 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 22nd. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.6%. This is a boost from Vistra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. Vistra’s payout ratio is currently 15.41%.

Vistra Company Profile

Vistra (NYSE: VST) is an integrated power company that develops, owns and operates electricity generation and retail businesses in the United States. The company’s operations span wholesale power production—through a diversified fleet of thermal and lower‑carbon generation assets—and retail electricity supply to residential, commercial and industrial customers. Vistra serves organized wholesale markets and competitive retail markets, with a notable presence in Texas and other regional U.S. power markets.

Vistra’s core activities include the ownership and operation of generation facilities, the commercial dispatch and optimization of those assets into wholesale markets, and the sale of electricity and related services to end-use customers through its retail brands.