Vistra (NYSE:VST) Shares Gap Up After Analyst Upgrade

Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) shares gapped up before the market opened on Friday after UBS Group raised their price target on the stock from $161.00 to $174.00. The stock had previously closed at $149.66, but opened at $154.36. UBS Group currently has a buy rating on the stock. Vistra shares last traded at $156.27, with a volume of 1,271,424 shares.

Several other equities analysts have also commented on VST. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Vistra from $135.00 to $169.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. BMO Capital Markets increased 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. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on shares of Vistra from $105.00 to $141.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. Guggenheim lifted their price objective on shares of Vistra from $133.00 to $177.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on Vistra from $99.00 to $137.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 24th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $151.50.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Scott A. Hudson sold 115,000 shares of Vistra stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $164.16, for a total transaction of $18,878,400.00. Following the completion of 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 sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Stephen J. Muscato sold 207,100 shares of the company’s 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 sale, the executive vice president now owns 318,287 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $51,352,424.58. This trade represents a 39.42 % decrease in their position. 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 over the last three months. Insiders own 1.42% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Vistra

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

Vistra Stock Performance

The stock has a 50-day moving average of $143.91 and a 200-day moving average of $111.48. 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 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 1.21.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 20th were issued a $0.221 dividend. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.54%. This is a boost from Vistra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 20th. Vistra’s dividend payout ratio is presently 16.42%.

Vistra declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback plan on Thursday, November 7th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to purchase up to 2.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

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.