Stock Traders Buy High Volume of Vistra Call Options (NYSE:VST)

Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) was the target of unusually large options trading on Monday. Investors purchased 52,402 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of approximately 52% compared to the average daily volume of 34,572 call options.

Key Vistra News

Here are the key news stories impacting Vistra this week:

• Positive Sentiment: The U.S. Department of Energy confirmed a conditional loan commitment of up to $4.2 billion to help Vistra increase output and extend the operating lives of its Perry and Davis-Besse plants in Ohio and Beaver Valley in Pennsylvania. The projects could add approximately 433 megawatts of capacity while reducing Vistra’s upfront capital burden. DoE confirms up to $4.2B loan to Vistra
• Positive Sentiment: Investors view the federal financing as particularly valuable because much of the incremental nuclear output is supported by long-term agreements, including a 20-year power purchase agreement with Meta and a 20-year, 207-megawatt deal with New Era Energy & Digital for a Texas data center. These contracts improve revenue visibility and connect Vistra to AI-related electricity demand. Vistra Stock Gains as Federal Funds Fuel Nuclear Power Expansion
• Positive Sentiment: A separate Google nuclear-power agreement with Constellation Energy prompted a broader rally across nuclear-power stocks. The deal reinforced investor expectations that hyperscalers will pay for dependable, around-the-clock nuclear generation to support data centers, lifting sentiment toward Vistra as a comparable nuclear operator. Constellation Energy soars on Google nuclear deal
• Positive Sentiment: Unusually high call-option activity, including more than 52,000 contracts purchased, indicated increased speculative and institutional interest in further upside.
• Neutral Sentiment: Vistra extended its revolving-credit facility maturity to September 2027, supporting near-term liquidity, although the company remains highly leveraged.
• Negative Sentiment: Risks remain from Vistra’s recent earnings miss, substantial debt burden and a BMO Capital Markets price-target reduction to $210 from $231, despite retaining an outperform rating. The company is also challenging a PJM market proposal that it says could weaken investment incentives. Vistra challenges PJM proposal

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

VST has been the topic of several research reports. TD Cowen lowered their target price on Vistra from $222.00 to $221.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, August 19th. Scotiabank lifted their price objective on Vistra from $293.00 to $298.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Vistra from $212.00 to $227.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, August 21st. Wells Fargo & Company restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $212.00 price objective on shares of Vistra in a research note on Monday, August 10th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets dropped their price objective on shares of Vistra from $231.00 to $210.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday. Fifteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $217.61.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Vistra news, EVP Scott Hudson sold 44,444 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 331,137 shares in the company, valued at approximately $50,273,219.34. This trade represents a 11.83% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO James A. Burke bought 4,465 shares of Vistra stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 1st. The stock was purchased at an average price of $135.25 per share, with a total value of $603,891.25. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer owned 1,146,352 shares in the company, valued at approximately $155,044,108. This represents a 0.39% increase in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Corporate insiders own 0.92% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Vistra

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Outlook Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Vistra by 4.9% during the first quarter. Outlook Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,511 shares of the company’s stock worth $227,000 after buying an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. increased its stake in shares of Vistra by 5.3% in the 2nd quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 1,728 shares of the company’s stock valued at $274,000 after acquiring an additional 87 shares during the last quarter. Portfolio Design Labs LLC increased its stake in shares of Vistra by 1.2% in the 2nd quarter. Portfolio Design Labs LLC now owns 7,348 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,166,000 after acquiring an additional 87 shares during the last quarter. First National Bank of Hutchinson raised its position in shares of Vistra by 2.0% in the 1st quarter. First National Bank of Hutchinson now owns 4,521 shares of the company’s stock valued at $680,000 after acquiring an additional 90 shares during the period. Finally, Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of Vistra by 46.6% in the 1st quarter. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 302 shares of the company’s stock valued at $45,000 after acquiring an additional 96 shares during the period. 90.88% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Vistra Stock Up 10.7%

VST opened at $160.35 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $53.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.09 and a beta of 1.38. Vistra has a one year low of $132.66 and a one year high of $217.10. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $143.03 and a 200-day moving average price of $151.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.87, a current ratio of 0.97 and a quick ratio of 0.87.

Vistra (NYSE:VST) last issued 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). Vistra had a net margin of 11.55% and a return on equity of 108.68%. The business had revenue of $4.02 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.46 billion. Equities research analysts expect that Vistra will post 9.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Vistra Increases Dividend

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

About Vistra

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.