Vistra (NYSE:VST) Rating Lowered to Strong Sell at Zacks Research

Vistra (NYSE:VST) was downgraded by investment analysts at Zacks Research from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday, Zacks reports.

VST has been the topic of several other research reports. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $181.00 price objective on shares of Vistra in a research note on Thursday, October 1st. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Vistra from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 13th. BNP Paribas Exane set a $255.00 price target on shares of Vistra in a report on Wednesday, August 19th. UBS Group dropped their price target on shares of Vistra from $233.00 to $227.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, July 28th. Finally, Williams Trading set a $202.00 price target on shares of Vistra in a research note on Friday, October 2nd. Sixteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Vistra has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $217.61.

Vistra Price Performance

Shares of VST opened at $154.26 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $51.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.06 and a beta of 1.38. Vistra has a fifty-two week low of $132.66 and a fifty-two week high of $217.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.87, a current ratio of 0.97 and a quick ratio of 0.87. The business’s 50-day moving average is $144.84 and its 200-day moving average is $151.28.

Vistra (NYSE:VST) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, August 7th. The company reported $0.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.61 by ($0.85). The company had revenue of $4.02 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.46 billion. Vistra had a return on equity of 108.68% and a net margin of 11.55%. Equities research analysts expect that Vistra will post 9.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Vistra news, CEO James Burke bought 4,465 shares of Vistra stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 1st. The stock was purchased 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 directly owned 1,146,352 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $155,044,108. The trade was a 0.39% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Scott A. Hudson sold 44,444 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $151.82, for a total transaction of $6,747,488.08. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 331,137 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $50,273,219.34. This represents a 11.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Corporate insiders own 0.92% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of VST. V Square Quantitative Management LLC boosted its holdings in Vistra by 4.7% in the third quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 2,283 shares of the company’s stock worth $316,000 after purchasing an additional 103 shares in the last quarter. Oak Grove Capital LLC grew its holdings in Vistra by 12.8% in the 3rd quarter. Oak Grove Capital LLC now owns 224,510 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,061,000 after buying an additional 25,400 shares during the last quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Vistra by 41.5% during the third quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 2,559 shares of the company’s stock worth $354,000 after buying an additional 751 shares during the last quarter. Avaii Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Vistra by 18.6% during the third quarter. Avaii Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,124 shares of the company’s stock worth $577,000 after buying an additional 648 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wedmont Private Capital lifted its holdings in shares of Vistra by 3.7% during the third quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 4,226 shares of the company’s stock worth $585,000 after buying an additional 151 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 90.88% of the company’s stock.

Trending Headlines about Vistra

Here are the key news stories impacting Vistra this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Federal loan supports capacity expansion: The Department of Energy announced a $4.2 billion loan to Vistra to modernize its power fleet and expand generation. The financing could help the company benefit from rising electricity demand from AI and data centers, particularly in markets where Vistra already operates. Vistra Stock Surged Following Its $4.2 Billion Federal Loan
• Positive Sentiment: Redemption of Series A preferred stock: Vistra announced the redemption of all one million outstanding Series A preferred shares for $1.0 billion. Eliminating the 8% preferred security could reduce costly preferred financing and simplify the capital structure, though it will require a substantial cash outlay. Vistra Announces Redemption of All Outstanding Series A Preferred Stock
• Positive Sentiment: AI-related power demand remains a growth theme: Coverage highlighted record power demand across the Mid-Atlantic, Midwest and Texas, reinforcing the investment case for Vistra’s generation assets and potential earnings growth from data-center expansion. Stocks Supplying the AI Data Center Power Crunch
• Neutral Sentiment: Shares remain volatile: Vistra declined sharply on October 14 while the broader market also fell, then recovered in the following session. Recent swings occurred without a new earnings report, suggesting positioning and sentiment are contributing to trading activity. Did the Market Read Vistra Stock Right?
• Negative Sentiment: Near-term valuation may limit upside: An analysis found Vistra’s forward valuation near historical averages and viewed Constellation Energy as having a stronger near-term setup. This suggests investors may already be pricing in much of Vistra’s nuclear and data-center opportunity. Why Constellation Energy Has a Near-Term Edge Over Vistra

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.