Vistra (NYSE:VST) Shares Up 1.2% – Time to Buy?

Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST)’s share price was up 1.2% on Monday . The company traded as high as $170.45 and last traded at $167.59. Approximately 5,707,110 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 45% from the average daily volume of 10,342,942 shares. The stock had previously closed at $165.65.

Analyst Ratings Changes

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

Vistra Price Performance

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 cap of $57.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.27, a PEG ratio of 1.17 and a beta of 1.22. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $158.32 and a 200 day moving average price of $129.55.

Vistra declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase program on Thursday, November 7th that allows the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to purchase up to 2.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Scott B. Helm sold 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the director now owns 343,350 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $47,990,029.50. This trade represents a 5.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Scott A. Hudson sold 115,000 shares of the company’s 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 sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 254,932 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $41,849,637.12. This represents a 31.09 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 342,100 shares of company stock valued at $55,087,314 in the last ninety days. 1.42% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Vistra

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of VST. Focus Partners Wealth raised its stake in shares of Vistra by 85.9% during the 4th quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 5,703 shares of the company’s stock worth $811,000 after buying an additional 2,635 shares in the last quarter. Eisler Capital Management Ltd. purchased a new position in Vistra in the fourth quarter worth $2,276,000. Engle Capital Management L.P. acquired a new stake in Vistra in the fourth quarter valued at $9,155,000. Ethic Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Vistra during the 4th quarter worth $1,454,000. Finally, Ensign Peak Advisors Inc grew its stake in shares of Vistra by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc now owns 734,498 shares of the company’s stock worth $101,265,000 after purchasing an additional 6,409 shares during the period. 90.88% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Vistra Company Profile

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.