Vistra (NYSE:VST) Trading Down 2.9% – Should You Sell?

Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) traded down 2.9% during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as low as $128.26 and last traded at $129.72. 2,716,344 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 71% from the average session volume of 9,260,009 shares. The stock had previously closed at $133.66.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on VST. UBS Group boosted their price target on Vistra from $161.00 to $174.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 3rd. Evercore ISI began coverage on Vistra in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. They set an “outperform” rating and a $202.00 target price on the stock. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Vistra from $135.00 to $169.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on shares of Vistra from $151.00 to $191.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Bank of America assumed coverage on shares of Vistra in a research report on Monday, January 27th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $206.00 target price for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $171.64.

Vistra Trading Down 7.4 %

The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $160.13 and its 200 day moving average price is $134.83. The stock has a market cap of $42.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.10, a PEG ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 1.22. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.68.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Thursday, March 20th will be paid a dividend of $0.2235 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 20th. This represents a $0.89 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.72%. This is a positive change from Vistra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. Vistra’s payout ratio is presently 16.60%.

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

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Scott B. Helm sold 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $139.77, for a total transaction of $2,795,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 343,350 shares in the company, 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 through the SEC website. Company insiders own 1.42% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Vistra

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Vistra in the fourth quarter worth approximately $409,087,000. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its holdings in shares of Vistra by 63.6% in the fourth quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 6,260,363 shares of the company’s stock worth $863,116,000 after buying an additional 2,433,732 shares during the last quarter. Capital International Investors purchased a new position in shares of Vistra during the 4th quarter worth $286,414,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Vistra in the 4th quarter worth $237,441,000. Finally, Appaloosa LP raised its holdings in Vistra by 112.5% in the 4th quarter. Appaloosa LP now owns 2,700,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $372,249,000 after purchasing an additional 1,429,612 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 90.88% of the company’s stock.

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.