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

Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST)’s stock price gapped down before the market opened on Friday . The stock had previously closed at $136.98, but opened at $132.45. Vistra shares last traded at $137.44, with a volume of 688,879 shares traded.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently commented on VST shares. UBS Group reduced their price objective on shares of Vistra from $157.00 to $150.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. BNP Paribas began coverage on shares of Vistra in a research report on Monday, October 14th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $231.00 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 report on Thursday, October 3rd. Guggenheim lifted their price objective on Vistra from $133.00 to $177.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on Vistra from $99.00 to $137.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 24th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat, Vistra presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $149.10.

Vistra Price Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $47.61 billion, a PE ratio of 26.11, a P/E/G ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $140.84 and a 200-day moving average price of $107.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.68, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 0.99.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 20th will be paid a dividend of $0.221 per share. This is a boost from Vistra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.63%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 20th. Vistra’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 16.42%.

Vistra declared that its Board of Directors has authorized 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 buy up to 2.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity at Vistra

In related news, EVP Scott A. Hudson sold 115,000 shares of the business’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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 254,932 shares in the company, valued at approximately $41,849,637.12. The trade was a 31.09 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Scott B. Helm sold 20,000 shares of Vistra stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $139.77, for a total transaction of $2,795,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 343,350 shares in the company, valued at approximately $47,990,029.50. This trade represents a 5.50 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 342,100 shares of company stock worth $55,087,314. 1.42% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Fifth Third Bancorp raised its stake in shares of Vistra by 29.0% in the 2nd quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 1,905 shares of the company’s stock valued at $164,000 after acquiring an additional 428 shares during the period. Highland Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Vistra during the second quarter worth about $1,429,000. State of Michigan Retirement System boosted its position in shares of Vistra by 16.8% in the second quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 96,400 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,288,000 after buying an additional 13,900 shares during the period. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC grew its stake in shares of Vistra by 143.5% in the second quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 164,418 shares of the company’s stock valued at $14,137,000 after buying an additional 96,889 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Vistra by 52.8% during the 2nd quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 60,810 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,228,000 after buying an additional 21,002 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors 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.