Vistra (NYSE:VST) Trading Up 6.9% on Analyst Upgrade

Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST)’s share price traded up 6.9% during trading on Friday after UBS Group raised their price target on the stock from $161.00 to $174.00. UBS Group currently has a buy rating on the stock. Vistra traded as high as $160.65 and last traded at $159.94. 3,638,958 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 22% from the average session volume of 4,690,819 shares. The stock had previously closed at $149.66.

Several other analysts also recently issued reports on VST. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on Vistra from $135.00 to $169.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. Guggenheim raised their price target 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. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on shares of Vistra from $146.00 to $147.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 29th. Royal Bank of Canada raised 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. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. initiated coverage on Vistra in a report on Thursday, October 17th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $178.00 price target for the company. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $151.50.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Scott B. Helm sold 20,000 shares of the 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $47,990,029.50. This represents a 5.50 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Scott A. Hudson sold 115,000 shares of Vistra stock in a transaction 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 sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 254,932 shares in the company, valued at $41,849,637.12. The trade was a 31.09 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 342,100 shares of company stock valued at $55,087,314. Insiders own 1.42% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Vistra

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its stake in Vistra by 115.3% in the 2nd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 2,532,657 shares of the company’s stock worth $217,758,000 after purchasing an additional 1,356,488 shares in the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans increased its position in shares of Vistra by 1,358.2% in 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 raised its holdings in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 1,037,402 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its holdings in shares of Vistra by 36.0% during the third quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 3,781,908 shares of the company’s stock valued at $448,320,000 after acquiring an additional 1,000,307 shares during the period. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP lifted its position 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 acquiring an additional 893,093 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.88% of the company’s stock.

Vistra Stock Up 8.5 %

The business’s 50 day moving average is $143.91 and its 200 day moving average is $111.31. 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 stock has a market cap of $55.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.29, a price-to-earnings-growth 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 paid 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 yield of 0.54%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 20th. Vistra’s dividend payout ratio is currently 16.42%.

Vistra announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback program 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 stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

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.