Vistra (NYSE:VST) Shares Gap Down – Should You Sell?

Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) gapped down prior to trading on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $124.01, but opened at $120.25. Vistra shares last traded at $121.16, with a volume of 1,766,983 shares traded.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on VST shares. Daiwa America raised Vistra to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Vistra from $203.00 to $186.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday. Daiwa Capital Markets began coverage on shares of Vistra in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $120.00 price target on the stock. Finally, UBS Group increased 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. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Vistra currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $163.50.

Vistra Stock Down 0.2 %

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 $40.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.21, a P/E/G ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 1.21. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $147.39 and its 200-day moving average is $139.96.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 20th will be issued a $0.2235 dividend. This is an increase from Vistra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. This represents a $0.89 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.75%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 20th. Vistra’s payout ratio is presently 12.62%.

Insider Activity at Vistra

In other news, Director Paul M. Barbas sold 24,136 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.19, for a total transaction of $2,997,449.84. Following the transaction, the director now owns 51,063 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,341,513.97. This represents a 32.10 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director John William Pitesa purchased 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $126.75 per share, with a total value of $190,125.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 3,467 shares in the company, valued at $439,442.25. This trade represents a 76.26 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 1.42% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Vistra during the 4th quarter valued at about $409,087,000. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its holdings in Vistra by 63.6% during the 4th 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 period. Capital International Investors bought a new position in Vistra in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $286,414,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Vistra in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $237,441,000. Finally, Appaloosa LP increased its position in shares of Vistra by 112.5% during the fourth quarter. Appaloosa LP now owns 2,700,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $372,249,000 after acquiring an additional 1,429,612 shares in the last quarter. 90.88% of the stock is 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.