Vistra (NYSE:VST) Stock Price Up 2.7% – Should You Buy?

Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST)’s share price shot up 2.7% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $174.63 and last traded at $173.80. 1,293,575 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 81% from the average session volume of 6,729,961 shares. The stock had previously closed at $169.17.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

VST has been the topic of several analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on shares of Vistra from $105.00 to $141.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. assumed coverage on shares of Vistra in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $178.00 target price on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on shares of Vistra from $99.00 to $137.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 24th. BNP Paribas began coverage on Vistra in a report on Monday, October 14th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $231.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Guggenheim upped their target price on Vistra from $133.00 to $177.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $151.50.

Vistra Stock Up 4.3 %

The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.68. The company has a market cap of $60.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.83, a P/E/G ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 1.21. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $150.55 and its 200-day moving average is $115.81.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 20th were issued a $0.221 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 20th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.50%. This is a positive change from Vistra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. Vistra’s dividend payout ratio is presently 16.60%.

Vistra declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase program on Thursday, November 7th that permits the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to purchase up to 2.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity at Vistra

In other news, EVP Scott A. Hudson sold 115,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $164.16, for a total value 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 sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Stephen J. Muscato sold 207,100 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $161.34, for a total transaction of $33,413,514.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 318,287 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $51,352,424.58. This trade represents a 39.42 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 342,100 shares of company stock valued at $55,087,314. 1.42% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Private Advisor Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Vistra by 13.4% in the 2nd quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 7,985 shares of the company’s stock worth $687,000 after purchasing an additional 946 shares during the period. Acadian Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in Vistra in the 2nd quarter worth about $700,000. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale raised its stake in Vistra by 43.6% in the 2nd quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 26,653 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,309,000 after acquiring an additional 8,097 shares during the period. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. bought a new position in Vistra during the second quarter worth about $64,000. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its stake in shares of Vistra by 115.3% in the second quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 2,532,657 shares of the company’s stock worth $217,758,000 after purchasing an additional 1,356,488 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 90.88% of the company’s stock.

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.