Vistra (NYSE:VST) Shares Up 0.7% – Here’s Why

Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) shot up 0.7% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $164.62 and last traded at $162.50. 954,844 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 86% from the average session volume of 6,811,525 shares. The stock had previously closed at $161.31.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on VST shares. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on Vistra from $105.00 to $141.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. BNP Paribas initiated coverage on shares of Vistra in a research note on Monday, October 14th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $231.00 price objective for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. started coverage on Vistra in a report on Thursday, October 17th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $178.00 target price on the stock. UBS Group reduced their price target on Vistra from $157.00 to $150.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on Vistra from $135.00 to $169.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, November 22nd. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $149.10.

Vistra Price Performance

The company has a market cap of $55.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.32, a P/E/G ratio of 1.98 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.68, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a current ratio of 1.11. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $136.04 and a 200 day simple moving average of $103.62.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 20th will be paid a $0.221 dividend. This is a positive change from Vistra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.54%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 20th. Vistra’s dividend payout ratio is currently 16.42%.

Vistra announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback plan on Thursday, November 7th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to reacquire up to 2.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at Vistra

In other news, EVP Scott A. Hudson sold 115,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 25th. The shares were 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $41,849,637.12. This trade represents a 31.09 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Stephen J. Muscato sold 207,100 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $161.34, for a total value of $33,413,514.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 318,287 shares in the company, valued at $51,352,424.58. The trade was a 39.42 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 1.42% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in VST. State Street Corp increased its position in Vistra by 6.8% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 16,355,255 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,938,752,000 after acquiring an additional 1,037,402 shares in the last quarter. Lone Pine Capital LLC raised its position in Vistra by 6.6% in the 2nd quarter. Lone Pine Capital LLC now owns 6,838,007 shares of the company’s stock worth $587,932,000 after purchasing an additional 425,126 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its holdings in Vistra by 51.1% during the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 3,826,631 shares of the company’s stock worth $453,609,000 after buying an additional 1,293,974 shares in the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC boosted its position in Vistra by 36.0% in the 3rd quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 3,781,908 shares of the company’s stock valued at $448,320,000 after buying an additional 1,000,307 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Castle Hook Partners LP increased its stake in shares of Vistra by 33.5% in the 3rd quarter. Castle Hook Partners LP now owns 2,610,273 shares of the company’s stock valued at $309,422,000 after buying an additional 654,568 shares during the period. 90.88% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.