Insider Selling: Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) Director Sells 20,000 Shares of Stock

Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) Director Scott B. Helm sold 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $139.77, for a total value of $2,795,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 343,350 shares in the company, valued at approximately $47,990,029.50. This represents a 5.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink.

Vistra Stock Performance

NYSE VST opened at $145.13 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $49.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.08, a PEG ratio of 2.05 and a beta of 1.16. Vistra Corp. has a twelve month low of $37.31 and a twelve month high of $168.67. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $139.47 and a 200 day simple moving average of $105.85. The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.68.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Investors of record on Friday, December 20th will be issued a $0.221 dividend. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.61%. This is an increase from Vistra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 20th. Vistra’s dividend payout ratio is presently 16.42%.

Vistra announced that its board has authorized a share buyback plan on Thursday, November 7th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to repurchase up to 2.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Guggenheim increased their price target on Vistra from $133.00 to $177.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on Vistra from $146.00 to $147.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 29th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on shares of Vistra from $105.00 to $141.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Vistra from $135.00 to $169.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, November 22nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. assumed coverage on shares of Vistra in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $178.00 price objective for the company. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $149.10.

Institutional Trading of Vistra

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Redwood Wealth Management Group LLC bought a new stake in Vistra during the second quarter valued at $26,000. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. bought a new stake in Vistra during the third quarter valued at $30,000. Mark Sheptoff Financial Planning LLC bought a new stake in Vistra during the third quarter valued at $30,000. CVA Family Office LLC boosted its position in Vistra by 1,505.9% during the third quarter. CVA Family Office LLC now owns 273 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 256 shares during the last quarter. Finally, EdgeRock Capital LLC bought a new stake in Vistra during the second quarter valued at $34,000. 90.88% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.