Vistra (NYSE:VST) Shares Down 13.9% After Analyst Downgrade

Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST)’s share price was down 13.9% during trading on Wednesday after KeyCorp downgraded the stock from an overweight rating to a sector weight rating. The stock traded as low as $117.27 and last traded at $120.1750. 20,337,389 shares changed hands during trading, an increase of 289% from the average session volume of 5,223,407 shares. The stock had previously closed at $139.59.

A number of other analysts have also recently weighed in on VST. UBS Group set a $176.00 price target on Vistra in a research report on Wednesday, October 21st. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $181.00 price objective on shares of Vistra in a report on Thursday, October 1st. HSBC started coverage on shares of Vistra in a research note on Thursday, October 22nd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $190.00 target price on the stock. Mizuho assumed coverage on shares of Vistra in a report on Monday, August 24th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $169.00 target price on the stock. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group set a $206.00 target price on shares of Vistra in a report on Wednesday, August 12th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Vistra presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $202.43.

Insider Buying and Selling at Vistra

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Vistra

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Apella Capital LLC lifted its position in Vistra by 2.6% during 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 grew its holdings in shares of Vistra by 2.3% in the 3rd quarter. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC now owns 3,400 shares of the company’s stock valued at $470,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. grew its holdings 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 in the last quarter. Portfolio Design Labs LLC increased its position in shares of Vistra by 1.2% in the second 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. Finally, First National Bank of Hutchinson increased its position 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 acquiring an additional 90 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 90.88% of the company’s stock.

Vistra Trading Down 13.9%

The firm has a market cap of $40.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.30 and a beta of 1.37. 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 has a 50-day moving average of $145.11 and a 200-day moving average of $153.38.

Vistra (NYSE:VST) last issued 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 company had revenue of $4.02 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.46 billion. Research analysts anticipate that Vistra Corp. will post 9.19 EPS for the current year.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 22nd will be paid a $0.2310 dividend. This is a boost from Vistra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. This represents a $0.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 22nd. Vistra’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 15.54%.

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.