Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) EVP Stephen J. Muscato Sells 207,100 Shares

Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) EVP Stephen J. Muscato sold 207,100 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $161.34, for a total transaction of $33,413,514.00. Following the completion of the transaction, 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 sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink.

Vistra Stock Up 5.5 %

VST stock opened at $162.63 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $55.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.34, a PEG ratio of 1.98 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.68. Vistra Corp. has a 12 month low of $34.70 and a 12 month high of $168.67. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $128.54 and a two-hundred day moving average of $100.54.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 20th will be issued a $0.221 dividend. This is an increase from Vistra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 20th. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.54%. Vistra’s dividend payout ratio is presently 16.42%.

Vistra announced that its board has approved a share buyback plan on Thursday, November 7th that allows the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to buy up to 2.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Institutional Trading of Vistra

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of VST. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its stake in shares of Vistra by 115.3% in the 2nd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 2,532,657 shares of the company’s stock valued at $217,758,000 after buying an additional 1,356,488 shares during the period. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans grew its stake in shares of 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 buying an additional 1,143,918 shares during the period. State Street Corp grew its stake in shares of 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 buying an additional 1,037,402 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC grew its stake in shares of 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 period. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP grew its stake 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 valued at $101,096,000 after buying an additional 893,093 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.88% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on shares of Vistra from $99.00 to $137.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 24th. UBS Group reduced their price target on shares of Vistra from $157.00 to $150.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Vistra from $135.00 to $169.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on shares of Vistra from $146.00 to $147.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 29th. Finally, BNP Paribas began coverage on shares of Vistra in a research report on Monday, October 14th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $231.00 price target for the company. Ten equities research 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 $149.10.

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.