Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) EVP Scott A. Hudson Sells 115,000 Shares of Stock

Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) EVP Scott A. Hudson sold 115,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $164.16, for a total value of $18,878,400.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 254,932 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $41,849,637.12. This trade represents a 31.09 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink.

Vistra Trading Up 5.5 %

NYSE VST opened at $162.63 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $128.54 and a 200-day moving average of $100.54. Vistra Corp. has a 12 month low of $34.70 and a 12 month high of $168.67. The company has a market cap of $55.33 billion, a PE ratio of 30.34, a PEG ratio of 1.98 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.68.

Vistra announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Thursday, November 7th that allows the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to buy up to 2.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 20th will be issued a dividend of $0.221 per share. This is an increase from Vistra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 20th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.54%. Vistra’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 16.42%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the company. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on Vistra from $146.00 to $147.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 29th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Vistra from $135.00 to $169.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. assumed coverage on Vistra in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $178.00 price target for the company. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on Vistra from $105.00 to $141.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. Finally, UBS Group cut their price objective on Vistra from $157.00 to $150.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $149.10.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Vistra

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in VST. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its holdings in Vistra by 115.3% during the 2nd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 2,532,657 shares of the company’s stock valued at $217,758,000 after purchasing an additional 1,356,488 shares during the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans lifted its holdings in Vistra by 1,358.2% during the 2nd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 1,228,144 shares of the company’s stock valued at $105,596,000 after purchasing an additional 1,143,918 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in Vistra by 6.8% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 16,355,255 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,938,752,000 after purchasing an additional 1,037,402 shares during the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC lifted its holdings in Vistra by 36.0% during the 3rd quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 3,781,908 shares of the company’s stock valued at $448,320,000 after purchasing an additional 1,000,307 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP lifted its holdings in Vistra by 315.9% during the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,175,811 shares of the company’s stock valued at $101,096,000 after purchasing an additional 893,093 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.88% of the company’s stock.

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.