Kovack Advisors Inc. Sells 3,444 Shares of Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST)

Kovack Advisors Inc. reduced its position in Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) by 3.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 88,607 shares of the company’s stock after selling 3,444 shares during the quarter. Kovack Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Vistra were worth $3,413,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. FinTrust Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Vistra in the third quarter worth $26,000. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Vistra by 160.7% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 717 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 442 shares in the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp purchased a new position in shares of Vistra in the third quarter worth $29,000. Lindbrook Capital LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Vistra by 64.4% in the fourth quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 840 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 329 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Rise Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Vistra in the fourth quarter worth $35,000. 90.88% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

VST has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Morgan Stanley reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $78.00 target price on shares of Vistra in a report on Monday, March 25th. Janney Montgomery Scott initiated coverage on shares of Vistra in a research report on Thursday, April 18th. They set a “buy” rating and a $82.00 price objective for the company. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on shares of Vistra from $52.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, March 4th. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their target price on shares of Vistra from $72.00 to $79.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $67.20.

Vistra Trading Up 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE:VST traded up $0.21 during trading on Friday, reaching $72.69. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 3,582,254 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,050,757. The company has a current ratio of 1.18, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.26. Vistra Corp. has a 12 month low of $22.67 and a 12 month high of $75.89. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $63.09 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $46.17. The stock has a market capitalization of $25.29 billion, a PE ratio of 20.31 and a beta of 1.05.

Vistra (NYSE:VST) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 28th. The company reported ($0.48) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.54 by ($1.02). The business had revenue of $3.08 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.48 billion. Vistra had a net margin of 10.10% and a return on equity of 20.05%. On average, research analysts predict that Vistra Corp. will post 3.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 29th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 20th were paid a $0.215 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 19th. This represents a $0.86 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.18%. This is an increase from Vistra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. Vistra’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 24.02%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Vistra news, EVP Carrie Lee Kirby sold 72,748 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.63, for a total value of $4,556,207.24. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 184,201 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,536,508.63. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, EVP Stephanie Zapata Moore sold 98,020 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.50, for a total transaction of $5,734,170.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 161,888 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,470,448. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Carrie Lee Kirby sold 72,748 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.63, for a total transaction of $4,556,207.24. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 184,201 shares in the company, valued at $11,536,508.63. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 257,285 shares of company stock valued at $15,404,397 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 1.42% of the company’s stock.

Vistra 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.