Vistra (NYSE:VST) Stock Price Up 2.7% – Still a Buy?

Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) shot up 2.7% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $164.46 and last traded at $162.2230. 3,717,096 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 26% from the average daily volume of 4,996,642 shares. The stock had previously closed at $157.99.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

VST has been the topic of several analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on Vistra from $240.00 to $231.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. TD Cowen decreased their price target on Vistra from $253.00 to $230.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Raymond James Financial set a $208.00 price target on Vistra in a report on Monday, April 27th. Sanford C. Bernstein set a $187.00 price objective on shares of Vistra and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 16th. Finally, Seaport Research Partners reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $230.00 target price on shares of Vistra in a research report on Monday, June 15th. Two 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $230.62.

Vistra Trading Up 2.7%

The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.51. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $154.26 and its 200 day simple moving average is $158.37. The stock has a market capitalization of $54.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.17 and a beta of 1.40.

Vistra (NYSE:VST) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $2.87 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.32 by $1.55. Vistra had a net margin of 11.52% and a return on equity of 105.64%. The company had revenue of $5.64 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.22 billion. Equities research analysts anticipate that Vistra Corp. will post 9.53 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Investors of record on Monday, June 22nd were paid a dividend of $0.229 per share. This is a boost from Vistra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. This represents a $0.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 22nd. Vistra’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 15.41%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Vistra

In other news, Director Scott B. Helm sold 25,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on 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 owned 232,200 shares in the company, valued at approximately $37,152,000. This represents a 9.72% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director John R. Sult sold 6,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.00, for a total value of $1,105,000.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 70,714 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,021,380. This represents a 8.42% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 41,588 shares of company stock valued at $6,739,227. 0.92% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Vistra

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Vistra during the fourth quarter valued at $746,729,000. Capital World Investors acquired a new stake in Vistra during the 4th quarter worth about $574,499,000. Rubric Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in Vistra during the 4th quarter worth about $322,660,000. Amundi grew its stake in Vistra by 72.3% during the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 1,949,568 shares of the company’s stock valued at $314,524,000 after acquiring an additional 817,876 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Corient Private Wealth LLC grew its stake in Vistra by 585.0% during the 4th quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 907,611 shares of the company’s stock valued at $146,425,000 after acquiring an additional 775,104 shares in the last quarter. 90.88% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Vistra Company Profile

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.