Proficio Capital Partners LLC Makes New Investment in Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST)

Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 183,367 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $25,281,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Peregrine Asset Advisers Inc. grew its position in Vistra by 3.2% during the 4th quarter. Peregrine Asset Advisers Inc. now owns 2,064 shares of the company’s stock worth $285,000 after purchasing an additional 64 shares during the period. Avior Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Vistra by 56.5% during the 4th quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC now owns 180 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares during the period. Galvin Gaustad & Stein LLC grew its position in Vistra by 3.6% during the 4th quarter. Galvin Gaustad & Stein LLC now owns 2,077 shares of the company’s stock worth $286,000 after purchasing an additional 73 shares during the period. Forum Financial Management LP grew its position in Vistra by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 11,527 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,366,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares during the period. Finally, Umpqua Bank boosted its stake in shares of Vistra by 2.2% during the 3rd quarter. Umpqua Bank now owns 3,780 shares of the company’s stock worth $448,000 after acquiring an additional 81 shares in the last quarter. 90.88% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Vistra Trading Up 3.0 %

Shares of Vistra stock opened at $133.85 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $45.54 billion, a PE ratio of 24.97, a P/E/G ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 1.22. Vistra Corp. has a twelve month low of $53.02 and a twelve month high of $199.84. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $160.25 and its 200 day moving average price is $133.67. 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 declared that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Thursday, November 7th that allows the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to purchase up to 2.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Thursday, March 20th will be paid a $0.2235 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 20th. This is a positive change from Vistra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. This represents a $0.89 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.67%. Vistra’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 16.60%.

Insider Activity at Vistra

In other Vistra news, Director Scott B. Helm sold 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $139.77, for a total value of $2,795,400.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 343,350 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $47,990,029.50. This trade represents a 5.50 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 1.42% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

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

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.