Vistra (NYSE:VST) Trading Down 0.6% – Should You Sell?

Shares of Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) fell 0.6% during trading on Thursday . The company traded as low as $141.45 and last traded at $142.44. 457,766 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 93% from the average session volume of 6,713,730 shares. The stock had previously closed at $143.36.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have issued reports on VST. JPMorgan Chase & Co. assumed coverage on shares of Vistra in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $178.00 price objective on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on shares of Vistra from $105.00 to $141.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. BNP Paribas started coverage on shares of Vistra in a research note on Monday, October 14th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $231.00 price target for the company. Morgan Stanley lifted 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. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group increased 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. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $149.10.

Vistra Price Performance

The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.68. The company has a market cap of $47.52 billion, a PE ratio of 26.06, a P/E/G ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 1.16. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $141.81 and a two-hundred day moving average of $108.97.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 20th will be paid a $0.221 dividend. This is a boost from Vistra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.63%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 20th. Vistra’s dividend payout ratio is currently 16.42%.

Vistra declared that its board has initiated a stock repurchase program on Thursday, November 7th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to buy up to 2.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Vistra

In related news, Director Scott B. Helm sold 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 10th. The shares were 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $47,990,029.50. This trade represents a 5.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, 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 transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 254,932 shares in the company, valued at $41,849,637.12. This trade represents a 31.09 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 342,100 shares of company stock valued at $55,087,314 in the last quarter. 1.42% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Vistra

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of VST. Forum Financial Management LP lifted its stake in Vistra by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 11,527 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,366,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares during the period. Umpqua Bank raised its holdings in shares of Vistra by 2.2% during the third quarter. Umpqua Bank now owns 3,780 shares of the company’s stock valued at $448,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares during the last quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC lifted its position in Vistra by 3.0% during the third quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,809 shares of the company’s stock valued at $333,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares during the period. Douglass Winthrop Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Vistra by 0.9% in the third quarter. Douglass Winthrop Advisors LLC now owns 11,335 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,344,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Interchange Capital Partners LLC grew its position in Vistra by 4.2% in the 3rd quarter. Interchange Capital Partners LLC now owns 2,710 shares of the company’s stock worth $321,000 after purchasing an additional 109 shares during the period. 90.88% of the stock is currently owned by 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.