Vistra (NYSE:VST) Shares Up 3.5% – Here’s Why

Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST)’s share price shot up 3.5% on Tuesday. The company traded as high as $147.45 and last traded at $146.7120. Approximately 3,916,025 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 24% from the average session volume of 5,152,889 shares. The stock had previously closed at $141.73.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

VST has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Williams Trading set a $202.00 price target on Vistra in a research report on Friday, October 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $212.00 price target on shares of Vistra in a research report on Monday, August 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $206.00 price target on Vistra in a report on Wednesday, August 12th. Bank of America cut their price target on Vistra from $196.00 to $194.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday. Finally, HSBC initiated coverage on Vistra in a research report on Thursday, October 22nd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $190.00 price objective for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have issued a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $209.24.

Vistra Trading Up 3.5%

The company has a quick ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.87. The firm has a market capitalization of $49.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.78 and a beta of 1.38. The business has a 50-day moving average of $145.08 and a two-hundred day moving average of $154.09.

Vistra (NYSE:VST) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, August 7th. The company reported $0.76 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. Research analysts predict that Vistra Corp. will post 9.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Investors of record on Monday, September 21st were paid a $0.23 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 21st. This is a positive change from Vistra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.2290. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.6%. Vistra’s dividend payout ratio is currently 15.54%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Vistra

In other Vistra news, EVP Scott Hudson sold 44,444 shares of Vistra stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $151.82, for a total transaction of $6,747,488.08. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 331,137 shares in the company, valued at $50,273,219.34. The trade was a 11.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO James A. Burke purchased 4,465 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 1st. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $135.25 per share, for a total transaction of $603,891.25. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer directly owned 1,146,352 shares in the company, valued at approximately $155,044,108. This trade represents a 0.39% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. 0.92% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Vistra

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Apella Capital LLC grew its stake in shares of Vistra by 2.6% in the 3rd quarter. Apella Capital LLC now owns 2,728 shares of the company’s stock worth $377,000 after buying an additional 69 shares in the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC raised its holdings in shares of Vistra by 2.3% in the third quarter. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC now owns 3,400 shares of the company’s stock worth $470,000 after buying an additional 75 shares during the period. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. lifted its position in shares of Vistra by 5.3% during the second quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 1,728 shares of the company’s stock worth $274,000 after purchasing an additional 87 shares during the last quarter. Portfolio Design Labs LLC lifted its holdings in Vistra by 1.2% during the 2nd quarter. Portfolio Design Labs LLC now owns 7,348 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,166,000 after buying an additional 87 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First National Bank of Hutchinson boosted its holdings in shares of Vistra by 2.0% in the first quarter. First National Bank of Hutchinson now owns 4,521 shares of the company’s stock valued at $680,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares during the period. 90.88% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Vistra

Vistra Corp. (NYSE: VST) is an integrated energy company based in Irving, Texas. The company operates across electricity generation, power distribution support, energy marketing and retail electricity sales, serving residential, commercial and industrial customers primarily in the United States.

Vistra owns and operates a diverse portfolio of power generation and energy storage facilities. Its assets include natural gas, nuclear, coal and renewable generation, as well as battery storage projects.