Vistra (NYSE:VST) Trading 0.1% Higher – Still a Buy?

Shares of Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) rose 0.1% during trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $149.35 and last traded at $145.22. Approximately 1,162,065 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 83% from the average daily volume of 6,769,780 shares. The stock had previously closed at $145.08.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently commented on VST. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on Vistra from $99.00 to $137.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 24th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on shares of Vistra from $105.00 to $141.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. Guggenheim lifted their price objective on shares of Vistra from $133.00 to $177.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. UBS Group decreased 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. Finally, BNP Paribas initiated coverage on Vistra in a research report on Monday, October 14th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $231.00 price target for the company. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price 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 firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $139.47 and a 200 day simple moving average of $105.85. The company has a market capitalization of $49.28 billion, a PE ratio of 27.09, a P/E/G ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.16.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Investors 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. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.61%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 20th. Vistra’s payout ratio is presently 16.42%.

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

Insider Activity

In other Vistra news, EVP Stephen J. Muscato sold 207,100 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 in the company, valued at approximately $51,352,424.58. This trade represents a 39.42 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Scott A. Hudson sold 115,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 254,932 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $41,849,637.12. The trade was a 31.09 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 342,100 shares of company stock worth $55,087,314. 1.42% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Vistra

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of VST. State Street Corp boosted its stake in shares of Vistra by 6.8% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 16,355,255 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,938,752,000 after buying an additional 1,037,402 shares during the last quarter. Lone Pine Capital LLC lifted its holdings in Vistra by 6.6% in the second quarter. Lone Pine Capital LLC now owns 6,838,007 shares of the company’s stock valued at $587,932,000 after acquiring an additional 425,126 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its position in Vistra by 51.1% in the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 3,826,631 shares of the company’s stock worth $453,609,000 after purchasing an additional 1,293,974 shares in the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC grew 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, Castle Hook Partners LP increased its holdings in shares of Vistra by 33.5% during the 3rd quarter. Castle Hook Partners LP now owns 2,610,273 shares of the company’s stock valued at $309,422,000 after purchasing an additional 654,568 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.