Vistra (NYSE:VST) Trading Down 1.7% – Should You Sell?

Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) traded down 1.7% during mid-day trading on Monday . The company traded as low as $166.50 and last traded at $171.10. 8,254,135 shares traded hands during trading, an increase of 87% from the average session volume of 4,420,974 shares. The stock had previously closed at $174.00.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Guggenheim raised their target price on shares of Vistra from $133.00 to $177.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Vistra from $161.00 to $174.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price 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. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on shares of Vistra from $99.00 to $137.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 24th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target 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. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat.com, Vistra has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $151.50.

Vistra Price Performance

The company’s 50-day moving average price is $151.89 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $117.17. The company has a market cap of $58.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.92, a P/E/G ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 1.21. 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 Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 20th were issued a $0.221 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 20th. This is a positive change from Vistra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.52%. Vistra’s payout ratio is 16.60%.

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Vistra

In other news, EVP Scott A. Hudson sold 115,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $164.16, for a total value of $18,878,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 254,932 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $41,849,637.12. This represents a 31.09 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through 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 transaction of $2,795,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 343,350 shares in the company, valued at $47,990,029.50. The trade was a 5.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 342,100 shares of company stock valued at $55,087,314 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 1.42% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Vistra

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Blair William & Co. IL lifted its stake in shares of Vistra by 57.2% in the 2nd quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 9,928 shares of the company’s stock valued at $854,000 after purchasing an additional 3,611 shares during the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans increased its holdings in shares of Vistra by 1,358.2% during the 2nd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 1,228,144 shares of the company’s stock worth $105,596,000 after purchasing an additional 1,143,918 shares during the period. Summit Trail Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Vistra during the 2nd quarter worth about $239,000. Profund Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Vistra by 38.0% during the 2nd quarter. Profund Advisors LLC now owns 18,351 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,578,000 after purchasing an additional 5,053 shares during the period. Finally, ProShare Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Vistra by 189.0% during the 2nd quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 47,386 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,074,000 after purchasing an additional 30,988 shares during the period. 90.88% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.