Vistra (NYSE:VST) to Buyback $1.00 billion in Outstanding Stock

Vistra (NYSE:VST) announced that its board has initiated a share repurchase plan on Thursday, November 7th, RTT News reports. The company plans to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to repurchase up to 2.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Vistra Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:VST opened at $141.91 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $48.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 104.35 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.89, a current ratio of 0.98 and a quick ratio of 0.88. Vistra has a 12 month low of $34.24 and a 12 month high of $144.77. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $113.05 and its 200 day moving average price is $94.80.

Vistra (NYSE:VST) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 8th. The company reported $0.90 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.59 by ($0.69). Vistra had a return on equity of 21.05% and a net margin of 4.61%. The firm had revenue of $3.85 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.04 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.03 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Vistra will post 4.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 20th will be given a $0.221 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 20th. This is a boost from Vistra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.62%. Vistra’s payout ratio is 64.71%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

VST has been the subject of several recent research reports. 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. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of Vistra from $110.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. began coverage on Vistra in a report on Thursday, October 17th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $178.00 price target on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on Vistra from $105.00 to $141.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. Finally, UBS Group lowered their target price on Vistra from $157.00 to $150.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $145.40.

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.