Vistra (NYSE:VST) Stock Price Down 1.4% – What’s Next?

Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) shares dropped 1.4% during mid-day trading on Friday. The company traded as low as $151.15 and last traded at $152.0620. Approximately 5,197,331 shares were traded during mid-day trading, an increase of 1% from the average session volume of 5,135,075 shares. The stock had previously closed at $154.17.

More 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.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on VST shares. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $181.00 price objective on shares of Vistra in a report on Thursday, October 1st. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Vistra from $212.00 to $227.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, August 21st. Wells Fargo & Company reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $212.00 target price on shares of Vistra in a report on Monday, August 10th. Siebert Williams Shank started coverage on shares of Vistra in a research report on Friday, October 2nd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $202.00 price target for the company. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group set a $206.00 price target on shares of Vistra in a research note on Wednesday, August 12th. 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 stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $216.74.

Vistra Stock Performance

The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $145.07 and its 200 day moving average price is $151.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.87, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a current ratio of 0.97. The company has a market capitalization of $51.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.69 and a beta of 1.38.

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

Vistra Increases Dividend

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

Insider Transactions at Vistra

In other Vistra news, CEO James A. Burke purchased 4,465 shares of the firm’s 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 acquisition, the chief executive officer owned 1,146,352 shares in the company, valued at approximately $155,044,108. The trade was a 0.39% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Scott Hudson sold 22,222 shares of Vistra stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $160.14, for a total value of $3,558,631.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 308,915 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $49,469,648.10. This trade represents a 6.71% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Company insiders own 0.92% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Vistra

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in Vistra in the second quarter valued at approximately $4,610,496,000. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Vistra by 0.5% during the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 16,850,452 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,672,987,000 after buying an additional 79,972 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its holdings in shares of Vistra by 1.0% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,436,880 shares of the company’s stock worth $516,616,000 after buying an additional 32,982 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE acquired a new stake in shares of Vistra during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $468,354,000. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Vistra during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $381,938,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.