Vistra (NYSE:VST) Shares Down 3.9% – Time to Sell?

Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST)’s share price dropped 3.9% during trading on Friday . The company traded as low as $156.84 and last traded at $156.86. Approximately 1,714,966 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 80% from the average daily volume of 8,742,647 shares. The stock had previously closed at $163.18.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

VST has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Vistra from $161.00 to $174.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 3rd. BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on shares of Vistra from $151.00 to $191.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Bank of America started coverage on shares of Vistra in a research note on Monday, January 27th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $206.00 price objective on the stock. Evercore ISI started coverage on shares of Vistra in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $202.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Vistra from $135.00 to $169.00 and gave the company 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 issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $171.64.

Vistra Stock Down 7.8 %

The company has a market capitalization of $51.21 billion, a PE ratio of 28.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 1.22. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $160.19 and its 200 day simple moving average is $132.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.68, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a current ratio of 1.11.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 20th will be given a dividend of $0.2235 per share. This is a positive change from Vistra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. This represents a $0.89 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.59%. Vistra’s payout ratio is presently 16.60%.

Vistra announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase program on Thursday, November 7th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to purchase up to 2.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Scott B. Helm sold 20,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the director now directly owns 343,350 shares in the company, valued at $47,990,029.50. The trade was a 5.50 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Scott A. Hudson sold 115,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 254,932 shares in the company, valued at $41,849,637.12. This represents a 31.09 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 1.42% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Vistra

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. State Street Corp boosted its position in shares of Vistra by 6.8% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 16,355,255 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,938,752,000 after buying an additional 1,037,402 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Vistra by 2.6% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,539,243 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,174,326,000 after buying an additional 219,055 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its position in shares of Vistra by 63.6% in the 4th quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 6,260,363 shares of the company’s stock worth $863,116,000 after buying an additional 2,433,732 shares in the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC boosted its position in shares of Vistra by 36.0% in the 3rd quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 3,781,908 shares of the company’s stock worth $448,320,000 after buying an additional 1,000,307 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp lifted its holdings in Vistra by 10.9% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 3,026,484 shares of the company’s stock valued at $417,261,000 after purchasing an additional 296,714 shares in the last quarter. 90.88% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Vistra Company 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.