Vistra (NYSE:VST) Stock Price Up 5.6% – Still a Buy?

Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) shares traded up 5.6% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $146.00 and last traded at $145.59. 1,423,250 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 79% from the average session volume of 6,683,200 shares. The stock had previously closed at $137.87.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have weighed in on the company. BNP Paribas initiated coverage on Vistra in a research report on Monday, October 14th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $231.00 target price on the stock. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Vistra from $135.00 to $169.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price 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. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Vistra from $161.00 to $174.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. started coverage on Vistra in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $178.00 price target for the company. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat, Vistra has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $151.50.

Vistra Price Performance

The company’s 50 day moving average price is $143.91 and its 200 day moving average price is $111.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.68, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 0.99. The firm has a market capitalization of $55.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.29, a PEG ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 1.16.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Investors of record on Friday, December 20th were issued 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 yield of 0.54%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 20th. Vistra’s dividend payout ratio is currently 16.42%.

Vistra declared that its board has authorized a share 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 leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Vistra

In related news, 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 completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 343,350 shares in the company, valued at approximately $47,990,029.50. The trade was a 5.50 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Scott A. Hudson sold 115,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 directly 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 have sold 342,100 shares of company stock worth $55,087,314 in the last three months. Insiders own 1.42% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Vistra

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of VST. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its holdings 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 valued at $217,758,000 after purchasing an additional 1,356,488 shares during the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans raised its holdings in Vistra by 1,358.2% during the second quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 1,228,144 shares of the company’s stock worth $105,596,000 after acquiring an additional 1,143,918 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its position in Vistra by 6.8% during the third 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 grew its stake in Vistra by 36.0% in the third quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 3,781,908 shares of the company’s stock valued at $448,320,000 after purchasing an additional 1,000,307 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP increased its position in shares of Vistra by 315.9% during the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,175,811 shares of the company’s stock worth $101,096,000 after purchasing an additional 893,093 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.88% of the company’s stock.

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.