Kovack Advisors Inc. Sells 3,460 Shares of Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST)

Kovack Advisors Inc. trimmed its holdings in Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) by 4.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 81,690 shares of the company’s stock after selling 3,460 shares during the quarter. Vistra comprises approximately 1.1% of Kovack Advisors Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 13th biggest position. Kovack Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Vistra were worth $11,263,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. State Street Corp grew its stake in shares of Vistra by 6.8% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 16,355,255 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,938,752,000 after purchasing an additional 1,037,402 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its stake in shares of Vistra by 51.1% during the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 3,826,631 shares of the company’s stock valued at $453,609,000 after purchasing an additional 1,293,974 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC grew its stake in shares of Vistra by 36.0% during the 3rd quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 3,781,908 shares of the company’s stock valued at $448,320,000 after purchasing an additional 1,000,307 shares during the period. Castle Hook Partners LP grew its stake in shares of Vistra by 33.5% during the 3rd quarter. Castle Hook Partners LP now owns 2,610,273 shares of the company’s stock valued at $309,422,000 after purchasing an additional 654,568 shares during the period. Finally, Rubric Capital Management LP grew its stake in shares of Vistra by 60.1% during the 3rd quarter. Rubric Capital Management LP now owns 2,125,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $251,898,000 after purchasing an additional 797,894 shares during the period. 90.88% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on Vistra from $135.00 to $169.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. UBS Group boosted their price objective on Vistra from $161.00 to $174.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. Evercore ISI assumed coverage on Vistra in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. They set an “outperform” rating and a $202.00 price objective for the company. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on Vistra from $151.00 to $191.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Bank of America assumed coverage on Vistra in a research note on Monday, January 27th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $206.00 price objective for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $171.64.

Vistra Stock Up 7.2 %

NYSE VST opened at $147.84 on Thursday. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $160.40 and its 200 day moving average is $133.70. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.68. Vistra Corp. has a 12 month low of $48.22 and a 12 month high of $199.84. The stock has a market cap of $50.30 billion, a PE ratio of 27.58, a P/E/G ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 1.22.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed 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 represents a $0.89 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.60%. This is a boost from Vistra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 20th. Vistra’s dividend payout ratio is 16.42%.

Vistra declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback plan on Thursday, November 7th that allows the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to buy up to 2.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Vistra

In other news, Director Scott B. Helm sold 20,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $139.77, for a total transaction of $2,795,400.00. Following the transaction, 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 position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 1.42% of the company’s stock.

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.