Vistra (NYSE:VST) Stock Price Down 1.2% – What’s Next?

Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST)’s stock price dropped 1.2% on Friday. The stock traded as low as $130.34 and last traded at $132.9520. Approximately 3,195,058 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 40% from the average session volume of 5,296,363 shares. The stock had previously closed at $134.51.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have issued reports on VST. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $206.00 price target on shares of Vistra and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 12th. Mizuho began coverage on shares of Vistra in a report on Monday, August 24th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $169.00 price objective on the stock. Williams Trading set a $202.00 target price on Vistra in a research report on Friday, October 2nd. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on Vistra from $227.00 to $226.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 21st. Finally, Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce lowered their price target on Vistra from $201.00 to $181.00 and set an “outperformer” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 28th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have given a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $200.45.

Vistra Stock Down 1.2%

The company has a current ratio of 1.16, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.58. The company has a market capitalization of $45.12 billion, a PE ratio of 17.97 and a beta of 1.37. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $143.42 and its 200-day simple moving average is $152.11.

Vistra (NYSE:VST) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, November 6th. The company reported $3.23 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.98 by $0.25. Vistra had a net margin of 13.15% and a return on equity of 113.41%. The business had revenue of $6.35 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.03 billion. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Vistra Corp. will post 8.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 22nd will be given a dividend of $0.2310 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 22nd. This represents a $0.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. This is an increase from Vistra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. Vistra’s payout ratio is 12.43%.

Vistra declared that its board has authorized a share buyback plan on Friday, November 6th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to repurchase up to 3.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Vistra

In other news, EVP Scott Hudson sold 44,444 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $151.82, for a total value of $6,747,488.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 331,137 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $50,273,219.34. The trade was a 11.83% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO James A. Burke bought 4,465 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 1st. The stock was bought at an average price of $135.25 per share, for a total transaction of $603,891.25. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer directly owned 1,146,352 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $155,044,108. The trade was a 0.39% increase in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Company insiders own 0.92% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Premier Financial Group acquired a new stake in Vistra during the 2nd quarter worth $34,000. Stonehage Fleming Financial Services Holdings Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Vistra during the second quarter worth $37,000. Silicon Valley Capital Partners acquired a new stake in shares of Vistra in the second quarter valued at about $39,000. Latitude Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Vistra in the third quarter valued at about $42,000. Finally, Provenance Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Vistra in the third quarter valued at about $43,000. 90.88% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Vistra

Vistra Corp. is an integrated energy company that generates and sells electricity and provides related services to residential, commercial and industrial customers. Its retail businesses offer electricity plans and energy services through brands that include TXU Energy and Ambit Energy. The company owns and operates a diverse generation fleet, including natural gas, nuclear, coal and solar facilities, as well as battery energy storage systems. Its operations serve customers and wholesale power markets across multiple U.S. regions, including Texas and the eastern and central United States.