Vistra (NYSE:VST) Shares Down 4.5% – Time to Sell?

Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) shares traded down 4.5% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as low as $157.87 and last traded at $161.72. 3,533,590 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 60% from the average session volume of 8,847,839 shares. The stock had previously closed at $169.35.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

Vistra Trading Down 7.8 %

The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $160.19 and a 200 day simple moving average of $131.92. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $51.21 billion, a PE ratio of 28.08, a P/E/G ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 1.22.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 20th will be paid a dividend of $0.2235 per share. This represents a $0.89 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.59%. This is a boost from Vistra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. Vistra’s dividend payout ratio is 16.60%.

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

Insider Activity at Vistra

In other news, Director Scott B. Helm sold 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 343,350 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $47,990,029.50. This trade represents a 5.50 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Scott A. Hudson sold 115,000 shares of Vistra 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 sale, the executive vice president now owns 254,932 shares in the company, valued at approximately $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. 1.42% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Vistra

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Lionsbridge Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Vistra in the 4th quarter valued at about $277,000. Dakota Wealth Management purchased a new position in Vistra in the fourth quarter valued at about $231,000. Empire Life Investments Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Vistra during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $23,028,000. Retirement Systems of Alabama lifted its position in shares of Vistra by 9.6% during the 3rd quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama now owns 78,965 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,361,000 after acquiring an additional 6,920 shares during the period. Finally, First Sabrepoint Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of Vistra during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $17,781,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.