Vistra (NYSE:VST) Trading 0.4% Higher – Here’s Why

Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST)’s share price traded up 0.4% on Monday . The company traded as high as $167.42 and last traded at $168.73. 4,457,109 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 57% from the average session volume of 10,314,133 shares. The stock had previously closed at $168.03.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on VST shares. UBS Group boosted their target price on Vistra from $161.00 to $174.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 3rd. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Vistra from $135.00 to $169.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Bank of America started coverage on shares of Vistra in a research note on Monday, January 27th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $206.00 target price for the company. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on shares of Vistra from $151.00 to $191.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. began coverage on Vistra in a report on Thursday, October 17th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $178.00 price objective on the stock. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $171.64.

Vistra Stock Up 1.8 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.68, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 0.99. The firm has a market capitalization of $58.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 1.22. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $156.64 and its 200 day moving average price is $124.26.

Vistra (NYSE:VST) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The company reported $5.25 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.24 by $4.01. Vistra had a return on equity of 57.63% and a net margin of 12.51%. The company had revenue of $6.29 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.96 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.25 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Vistra Corp. will post 7 EPS for the current year.

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Vistra news, EVP Scott A. Hudson sold 115,000 shares of the company’s 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. This represents a 31.09 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Scott B. Helm sold 20,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the director now owns 343,350 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $47,990,029.50. The trade was a 5.50 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 342,100 shares of company stock worth $55,087,314. 1.42% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Vistra

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in Vistra by 6.8% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 16,355,255 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,938,752,000 after purchasing an additional 1,037,402 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its stake in shares of Vistra by 51.1% during the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 3,826,631 shares of the company’s stock valued at $453,609,000 after buying an additional 1,293,974 shares during the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC grew its position 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 worth $448,320,000 after buying an additional 1,000,307 shares in the last quarter. Castle Hook Partners LP increased its stake in shares of Vistra by 33.5% in the third quarter. Castle Hook Partners LP now owns 2,610,273 shares of the company’s stock worth $309,422,000 after buying an additional 654,568 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Rubric Capital Management LP raised its holdings in Vistra by 60.1% in the third quarter. Rubric Capital Management LP now owns 2,125,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $251,898,000 after acquiring an additional 797,894 shares in the last quarter. 90.88% of the stock is 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.