Vistra (NYSE:VST) Stock Price Down 1.4% – Should You Sell?

Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST)’s share price traded down 1.4% on Friday. The company traded as low as $151.15 and last traded at $152.0620. 5,197,331 shares were traded during trading, an increase of 1% from the average daily volume of 5,135,075 shares. The stock had previously closed at $154.17.

Key Vistra News

Here are the key news stories impacting Vistra this week:

• Positive Sentiment: The Department of Energy announced a $4.2 billion federal loan to help Vistra modernize its generation fleet and expand capacity in high-growth power markets. The financing could strengthen the company’s ability to serve data centers and other customers as electricity demand rises. Vistra Stock Surged Following Its $4.2 Billion Federal Loan
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and financial media continue to identify Vistra as a major beneficiary of AI data-center power demand, with generation assets in fast-growing U.S. markets. One article estimates substantial long-term upside if nuclear and power-demand growth persist. Why Constellation Energy Has A Near-Term Edge Over Vistra
• Neutral Sentiment: Vistra announced the redemption of all one million Series A preferred shares for $1 billion. Eliminating the 8% preferred stock may simplify the capital structure and reduce preferred obligations, although it also requires a substantial cash outlay. Vistra Announces Redemption of All Outstanding Series A Preferred Stock
• Neutral Sentiment: Vistra was featured as a top AI data-center stock associated with portfolios attributed to President Trump and Nancy Pelosi. The coverage is largely promotional and does not represent a new company-specific catalyst. President Trump and Nancy Pelosi’s AI Data Center Stock Pick
• Negative Sentiment: Zacks Research downgraded VST from “Hold” to “Strong Sell,” adding a clear near-term bearish signal. Recent volatility and a sharp decline earlier in the week may also be keeping investors cautious.
• Negative Sentiment: Vistra’s latest reported quarter missed consensus expectations for both earnings and revenue, which may reinforce concerns about execution despite the company’s favorable long-term power-demand outlook.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on VST shares. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $181.00 price objective on shares of Vistra in a research note on Thursday, October 1st. Scotiabank upped their target price on Vistra from $293.00 to $298.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $206.00 target price on Vistra in a research note on Wednesday, August 12th. Zacks Research downgraded Vistra from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Vistra from $212.00 to $227.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 21st. Sixteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $216.74.

Vistra Stock Down 1.4%

The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $144.84 and its 200-day moving average price is $151.28. The stock has a market cap of $51.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.69 and a beta of 1.38. The company has a current ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.87.

Vistra (NYSE:VST) last released its earnings results on Friday, August 7th. The company reported $0.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.61 by ($0.85). Vistra had a net margin of 11.55% and a return on equity of 108.68%. The firm had revenue of $4.02 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.46 billion. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Vistra Corp. will post 9.04 earnings per share for the current year.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 21st were given a dividend of $0.23 per share. This is a positive change from Vistra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.2290. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 21st. This represents a $0.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.6%. Vistra’s payout ratio is 15.54%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Vistra

In related news, EVP Scott A. Hudson sold 22,222 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $160.14, for a total transaction of $3,558,631.08. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 308,915 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $49,469,648.10. This represents a 6.71% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO James Burke bought 4,465 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 1st. The shares were bought at an average cost of $135.25 per share, for a total transaction of $603,891.25. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer owned 1,146,352 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $155,044,108. This represents a 0.39% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Insiders own 0.92% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Vistra

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in VST. BlackRock Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Vistra during the second quarter valued at approximately $4,610,496,000. Bank of America Corp DE bought a new position in shares of Vistra in the 2nd quarter worth $468,354,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new position in shares of Vistra in the 2nd quarter worth $381,938,000. Jupiter Topco LLC bought a new position in shares of Vistra in the 2nd quarter worth $262,169,000. Finally, Deutsche Bank AG acquired a new stake in Vistra in the 2nd quarter valued at $138,267,000. Institutional investors own 90.88% of the company’s stock.

Vistra Company Profile

Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) is an integrated energy company headquartered in Irving, Texas. The company operates electricity generation facilities and provides electricity and related energy services to residential, commercial, and industrial customers. Its portfolio includes natural gas, nuclear, coal, solar, and battery energy storage assets.

Vistra also operates a retail electricity business that offers power plans, renewable energy options, and energy-management services. Its retail brands include TXU Energy, Homefield Energy, Dynegy, and Ambit Energy, serving customers in competitive electricity markets across the United States.