Vistra (NYSE:VST) Trading Up 0.6% – Here’s What Happened

Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) shares shot up 0.6% during mid-day trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $147.22 and last traded at $145.71. 1,127,925 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 83% from the average session volume of 6,757,596 shares. The stock had previously closed at $144.89.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have commented on VST shares. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on Vistra from $105.00 to $141.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. UBS Group cut their target price on shares of Vistra from $157.00 to $150.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. 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 price target for the company. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on shares of Vistra from $146.00 to $147.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 29th. Finally, Guggenheim raised their target price on Vistra from $133.00 to $177.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $149.10.

Vistra Price Performance

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 business has a 50 day moving average price of $140.12 and a 200-day moving average price of $106.73. The company has a market capitalization of $45.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.79, a P/E/G ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 1.16.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 20th will be issued a dividend of $0.221 per share. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.67%. This is a boost from Vistra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 20th. Vistra’s dividend payout ratio is presently 16.42%.

Vistra declared that its board has initiated a share buyback plan on Thursday, November 7th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to buy up to 2.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Stephen J. Muscato sold 207,100 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $161.34, for a total value of $33,413,514.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 318,287 shares in the company, valued at $51,352,424.58. This represents a 39.42 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Scott B. Helm sold 20,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 10th. The stock was 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $47,990,029.50. This represents a 5.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 342,100 shares of company stock valued at $55,087,314 over the last ninety days. 1.42% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its position in shares of Vistra by 115.3% during the second quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 2,532,657 shares of the company’s stock valued at $217,758,000 after acquiring an additional 1,356,488 shares during the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans grew its stake in Vistra by 1,358.2% in the 2nd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 1,228,144 shares of the company’s stock valued at $105,596,000 after purchasing an additional 1,143,918 shares during the period. State Street Corp increased its position in shares of Vistra by 6.8% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 16,355,255 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,938,752,000 after purchasing an additional 1,037,402 shares during the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its stake in shares of Vistra by 36.0% during the 3rd quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 3,781,908 shares of the company’s stock worth $448,320,000 after purchasing an additional 1,000,307 shares during the period. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP boosted its holdings in shares of Vistra by 315.9% in the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,175,811 shares of the company’s stock worth $101,096,000 after buying an additional 893,093 shares during 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.