Vistra (NYSE:VST) Coverage Initiated at Evercore ISI

Stock analysts at Evercore ISI began coverage on shares of Vistra (NYSE:VST) in a research note issued on Tuesday. The firm set an “outperform” rating and a $202.00 price target on the stock. Evercore ISI’s price objective points to a potential upside of 13.36% from the company’s previous close.

A number of other research analysts also recently commented on the company. UBS Group upped their price objective on Vistra from $161.00 to $174.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. BNP Paribas began coverage on shares of Vistra in a research note on Monday, October 14th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $231.00 target price for the company. Guggenheim upped their price objective on shares of Vistra from $133.00 to $177.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Vistra from $135.00 to $169.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on shares of Vistra from $99.00 to $137.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 24th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $163.80.

Vistra Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:VST traded up $7.34 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $178.20. 3,318,891 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,925,045. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.68, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 0.99. The company has a 50 day moving average of $152.40 and a 200-day moving average of $117.73. Vistra has a 12 month low of $39.13 and a 12 month high of $181.48. The stock has a market capitalization of $60.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 1.21.

Vistra announced that its board has initiated a share repurchase plan on Thursday, November 7th that permits the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to purchase up to 2.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity at Vistra

In other Vistra news, EVP Scott A. Hudson sold 115,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 owns 254,932 shares in the company, 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 SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Scott B. Helm sold 20,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 10th. The stock was 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $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 owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Vistra

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of VST. Blair William & Co. IL increased its stake in Vistra by 57.2% in the second quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 9,928 shares of the company’s stock valued at $854,000 after purchasing an additional 3,611 shares in the last quarter. Summit Trail Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Vistra in the 2nd quarter worth $239,000. Profund Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Vistra by 38.0% during the 2nd quarter. Profund Advisors LLC now owns 18,351 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,578,000 after purchasing an additional 5,053 shares in the last quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Vistra by 189.0% in the second quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 47,386 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,074,000 after purchasing an additional 30,988 shares in the last quarter. Finally, 1832 Asset Management L.P. acquired a new position in shares of Vistra during the second quarter worth about $2,943,000. 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.