Vontobel Holding Ltd. Buys 1,667 Shares of Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST)

Vontobel Holding Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) by 46.5% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 5,251 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,667 shares during the quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd.’s holdings in Vistra were worth $724,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Lionsbridge Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Vistra during the fourth quarter valued at $277,000. Dakota Wealth Management purchased a new stake in shares of Vistra during the 4th quarter worth approximately $231,000. Empire Life Investments Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Vistra during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $23,028,000. Retirement Systems of Alabama boosted its holdings in Vistra by 9.6% in the 3rd quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama now owns 78,965 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,361,000 after buying an additional 6,920 shares during the period. Finally, First Sabrepoint Capital Management LP bought a new position in Vistra in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $17,781,000. 90.88% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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 transaction of $2,795,400.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 343,350 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $47,990,029.50. This trade represents a 5.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Scott A. Hudson sold 115,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $164.16, for a total transaction of $18,878,400.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 254,932 shares in the company, valued at approximately $41,849,637.12. The trade was a 31.09 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 342,100 shares of company stock valued at $55,087,314 over the last 90 days. 1.42% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently weighed in on VST shares. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on shares of Vistra from $151.00 to $191.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Evercore ISI began coverage on shares of Vistra in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $202.00 price objective on the stock. Bank of America assumed 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 boosted their price objective 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, Morgan Stanley upped 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. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $171.64.

Vistra Price Performance

Vistra stock opened at $169.36 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.68. Vistra Corp. has a 52-week low of $45.52 and a 52-week high of $199.84. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $159.73 and a 200-day simple moving average of $131.14. The firm has a market capitalization of $57.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.60, a PEG ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 1.22.

Vistra declared that its board has initiated a stock repurchase program on Thursday, November 7th that permits the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to reacquire up to 2.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

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.