Vistra (NYSE:VST) Stock Price Up 0.4% – What’s Next?

Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) rose 0.4% on Monday . The company traded as high as $167.42 and last traded at $168.73. Approximately 4,457,109 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 57% from the average daily volume of 10,314,133 shares. The stock had previously closed at $168.03.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently commented on VST shares. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on shares of Vistra from $151.00 to $191.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. started coverage on Vistra in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $178.00 price objective on the stock. Guggenheim boosted their target price on Vistra from $133.00 to $177.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Evercore ISI initiated coverage on Vistra in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $202.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Bank of America assumed coverage on Vistra in a report on Monday, January 27th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $206.00 price objective for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $171.64.

Vistra Trading Up 0.3 %

The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $156.24 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $122.97. The company has a market capitalization of $57.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 1.22. The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.68.

Vistra (NYSE:VST) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The company reported $5.25 EPS 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 business had revenue of $6.29 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.96 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.25 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Vistra Corp. will post 7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Vistra declared that its Board of Directors has initiated 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 shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Scott A. Hudson sold 115,000 shares of the 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 transaction, the executive vice president now directly 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 transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Scott B. Helm sold 20,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 10th. The shares were 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 owns 343,350 shares in the company, 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. In the last three months, insiders sold 342,100 shares of company stock valued at $55,087,314. 1.42% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Vistra

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Lionsbridge Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Vistra in the fourth quarter valued at $277,000. Dakota Wealth Management bought a new position in shares of Vistra in the 4th quarter valued at about $231,000. Empire Life Investments Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Vistra in the third quarter valued at about $23,028,000. Retirement Systems of Alabama boosted its position in Vistra by 9.6% during the third quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama now owns 78,965 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,361,000 after purchasing an additional 6,920 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Terra Nova Asset Management LLC bought a new position in Vistra in the third quarter valued at approximately $842,000. 90.88% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.