Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) Receives Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Shares of Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) have been given a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the eleven analysts that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price objective among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $171.64.

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on shares of Vistra from $151.00 to $191.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Bank of America started coverage on shares of Vistra in a research note on Monday, January 27th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $206.00 price objective on the stock. Evercore ISI started coverage on shares of Vistra in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. They set an “outperform” rating and a $202.00 target price for the company. Morgan Stanley raised 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. Finally, UBS Group upped their price objective on Vistra from $161.00 to $174.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 3rd.

Vistra Price Performance

Shares of VST stock opened at $169.21 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $57.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.57, a PEG ratio of 1.17 and a beta of 1.22. Vistra has a 12 month low of $45.52 and a 12 month high of $199.84. 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 stock has a 50-day moving average price of $159.26 and a 200 day moving average price of $130.88.

Vistra announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase program on Thursday, November 7th that allows the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to purchase up to 2.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Vistra

In other news, Director Scott B. Helm sold 20,000 shares of the 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 sale, the director now owns 343,350 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $47,990,029.50. This represents a 5.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Stephen J. Muscato sold 207,100 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $161.34, for a total transaction of $33,413,514.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 318,287 shares in the company, valued at $51,352,424.58. This represents a 39.42 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 342,100 shares of company stock valued at $55,087,314 over the last 90 days. 1.42% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Vistra

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of VST. Lionsbridge Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Vistra in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $277,000. Dakota Wealth Management bought a new position in shares of Vistra during the 4th quarter worth approximately $231,000. Empire Life Investments Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Vistra in the third quarter valued at approximately $23,028,000. Retirement Systems of Alabama lifted its position in shares of Vistra by 9.6% in the third quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama now owns 78,965 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,361,000 after purchasing an additional 6,920 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Terra Nova Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Vistra during the third quarter worth $842,000. 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.