Vistra (NYSE:VST) Shares Up 3% – Here’s Why

Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) traded up 3% on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $170.34 and last traded at $163.5860. 7,946,004 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 54% from the average session volume of 5,155,996 shares. The stock had previously closed at $158.83.

Analyst Ratings Changes

VST has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on Vistra from $240.00 to $231.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Sanford C. Bernstein set a $187.00 target price on Vistra and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday. Raymond James Financial set a $208.00 target price on Vistra in a research report on Monday, April 27th. BMO Capital Markets reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $241.00 price target on shares of Vistra in a report on Monday, March 2nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $212.00 price target on shares of Vistra in a research report on Thursday, May 21st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have given a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $230.44.

Vistra Price Performance

The stock has a market cap of $55.16 billion, a PE ratio of 27.40 and a beta of 1.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.51, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a current ratio of 0.90. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $154.21 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $159.63.

Vistra (NYSE:VST) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $2.87 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.32 by $1.55. Vistra had a return on equity of 105.64% and a net margin of 11.52%.The company had revenue of $5.64 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.22 billion. Research analysts expect that Vistra Corp. will post 9.31 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 22nd will be given a dividend of $0.229 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 22nd. This represents a $0.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.6%. This is a boost from Vistra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. Vistra’s payout ratio is 15.24%.

Insider Transactions at Vistra

In related news, Director Paul M. Barbas sold 244 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $153.00, for a total transaction of $37,332.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 53,006 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,109,918. This trade represents a 0.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Scott B. Helm sold 25,000 shares of Vistra stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $160.00, for a total transaction of $4,000,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 232,200 shares in the company, valued at approximately $37,152,000. This represents a 9.72% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 35,088 shares of company stock worth $5,634,227 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.92% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Vistra

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Western Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in Vistra by 58.7% in the first quarter. Western Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,383 shares of the company’s stock valued at $509,000 after purchasing an additional 1,251 shares during the last quarter. Wealth High Governance Capital Ltda purchased a new stake in Vistra in the first quarter worth $10,543,000. Wealth High Governance Asset Management Ltda. bought a new stake in shares of Vistra in the first quarter valued at $8,980,000. Pine Valley Investments Ltd Liability Co raised its stake in shares of Vistra by 779.5% in the first quarter. Pine Valley Investments Ltd Liability Co now owns 11,425 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,718,000 after buying an additional 10,126 shares during the period. Finally, Parallel Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Vistra by 15.4% during the 1st quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 5,472 shares of the company’s stock valued at $823,000 after buying an additional 730 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.88% of the company’s stock.

About Vistra

Vistra (NYSE: VST) is an integrated power company that develops, owns and operates electricity generation and retail businesses in the United States. The company’s operations span wholesale power production—through a diversified fleet of thermal and lower‑carbon generation assets—and retail electricity supply to residential, commercial and industrial customers. Vistra serves organized wholesale markets and competitive retail markets, with a notable presence in Texas and other regional U.S. power markets.

Vistra’s core activities include the ownership and operation of generation facilities, the commercial dispatch and optimization of those assets into wholesale markets, and the sale of electricity and related services to end-use customers through its retail brands.