Vistra (NYSE:VST) Trading Up 2.4% – Should You Buy?

Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) was up 2.4% during trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $132.28 and last traded at $132.72. Approximately 1,471,713 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 80% from the average daily volume of 7,480,111 shares. The stock had previously closed at $129.63.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Bank of America raised shares of Vistra from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $164.00 to $152.00 in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. Evercore ISI started coverage on Vistra in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $202.00 price target for the company. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on Vistra from $151.00 to $191.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. UBS Group lifted their target price on Vistra from $161.00 to $174.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Vistra from $135.00 to $169.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Vistra presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $162.83.

Vistra Price Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $44.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.39, a PEG ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.68. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $151.74 and a 200-day simple moving average of $138.21.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Thursday, March 20th will be given a $0.2235 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 20th. This is an increase from Vistra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. This represents a $0.89 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.68%. Vistra’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 12.62%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

Institutional Trading of Vistra

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Vistra by 3.0% during the third quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,809 shares of the company’s stock worth $333,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares in the last quarter. Caprock Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Vistra during the 3rd quarter valued at $288,000. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG bought a new stake in shares of Vistra in the 3rd quarter worth $787,000. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Vistra by 90.7% in the third quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 21,291 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,524,000 after buying an additional 10,124 shares during the period. Finally, Commerce Bank boosted its stake in Vistra by 39.3% during the third quarter. Commerce Bank now owns 9,472 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,123,000 after buying an additional 2,670 shares in the last quarter. 90.88% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.