Vistra (NYSE:VST) Trading 2.7% Higher – Here’s Why

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on VST shares. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on shares of Vistra from $146.00 to $147.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 29th. UBS Group upped their target price on Vistra from $161.00 to $174.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. started coverage on shares of Vistra in a report on Thursday, October 17th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $178.00 price objective for the company. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Vistra from $135.00 to $169.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on Vistra from $105.00 to $141.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Vistra has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $151.50.

Vistra Trading Up 4.3 %

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

Vistra Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 20th were paid a $0.221 dividend. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.50%. This is an increase from Vistra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 20th. Vistra’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 16.60%.

Vistra announced that its board has approved a stock buyback program 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 stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are often an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at Vistra

In other news, EVP Stephen J. Muscato sold 207,100 shares of the 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 sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 318,287 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $51,352,424.58. This represents a 39.42 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Scott B. Helm sold 20,000 shares of Vistra stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 343,350 shares in the company, valued at $47,990,029.50. This represents a 5.50 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 342,100 shares of company stock valued at $55,087,314. Company insiders own 1.42% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Vistra

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Private Advisor Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Vistra by 13.4% during the 2nd quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 7,985 shares of the company’s stock worth $687,000 after acquiring an additional 946 shares during the period. Acadian Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Vistra during the second quarter valued at approximately $700,000. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale boosted its holdings in Vistra by 43.6% in the 2nd quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 26,653 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,309,000 after acquiring an additional 8,097 shares during the period. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. purchased a new stake in Vistra during the 2nd quarter worth $64,000. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its holdings in 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. 90.88% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.