Pictet Asset Management Holding SA Purchases 121,253 Shares of Vistra Corp. $VST

Pictet Asset Management Holding SA raised its position in shares of Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) by 9.6% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,388,586 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 121,253 shares during the period. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA’s holdings in Vistra were worth $208,746,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in VST. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Vistra during the fourth quarter valued at about $746,729,000. Capital World Investors purchased a new stake in shares of Vistra during the fourth quarter worth about $574,499,000. Rubric Capital Management LP bought a new stake in shares of Vistra in the fourth quarter worth about $322,660,000. Amundi increased its holdings in Vistra by 72.3% during the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 1,949,568 shares of the company’s stock valued at $314,524,000 after purchasing an additional 817,876 shares during the period. Finally, Corient Private Wealth LLC raised its position in Vistra by 585.0% during the 4th quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 907,611 shares of the company’s stock valued at $146,425,000 after purchasing an additional 775,104 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 90.88% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Vistra

In related news, Director Paul M. Barbas sold 244 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the director directly owned 53,006 shares in the company, valued at $8,109,918. This trade represents a 0.46% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Scott B. Helm sold 25,000 shares of Vistra stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $160.00, for a total transaction of $4,000,000.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 232,200 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $37,152,000. This trade represents a 9.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold 41,588 shares of company stock valued at $6,739,227 over the last 90 days. 0.92% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Vistra Stock Performance

Vistra stock opened at $163.69 on Friday. Vistra Corp. has a fifty-two week low of $132.66 and a fifty-two week high of $219.82. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $154.82 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $159.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.51, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a current ratio of 0.90. The stock has a market cap of $55.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.42 and a beta of 1.40.

Vistra (NYSE:VST) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $2.87 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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%. As a group, analysts expect that Vistra Corp. will post 9.52 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 22nd will be given a $0.229 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 22nd. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend 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%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on Vistra from $240.00 to $231.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $190.00 price target on shares of Vistra in a research note on Thursday, May 21st. Sanford C. Bernstein set a $187.00 price target on shares of Vistra and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 16th. TD Cowen reduced their price objective on shares of Vistra from $253.00 to $230.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $241.00 price objective on shares of Vistra in a research report on Monday, March 2nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Vistra has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $230.31.

About Vistra

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.