Vistra (NYSE:VST) Trading Down 5.2% – Time to Sell?
by Jessica Moore · The Cerbat GemVistra Corp. (NYSE:VST – Get Free Report) was down 5.2% during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as low as $158.30 and last traded at $158.76. Approximately 5,606,100 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 7% from the average daily volume of 6,005,988 shares. The stock had previously closed at $167.40.
Analyst Ratings Changes
A number of research analysts recently commented on VST shares. Bank of America lowered their price objective on Vistra from $231.00 to $218.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 12th. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded shares of Vistra from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $205.00 price target for the company in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Vistra from $236.00 to $234.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 27th. Evercore boosted their target price on shares of Vistra from $237.00 to $243.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 7th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Vistra in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have issued a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Vistra currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $236.40.
Check Out Our Latest Analysis on Vistra
Vistra Stock Performance
The stock has a market cap of $53.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 73.16, a PEG ratio of 0.99 and a beta of 1.42. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $163.66 and its 200 day simple moving average is $179.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.01, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 0.78.
Vistra (NYSE:VST – Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 26th. The company reported $2.18 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.45 by ($0.27). Vistra had a return on equity of 81.09% and a net margin of 5.32%.The company had revenue of $4.58 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.75 billion. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Vistra Corp. will post 7 earnings per share for the current year.
Vistra Increases Dividend
The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 20th will be given a dividend of $0.228 per share. This is a boost from Vistra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 20th. This represents a $0.91 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.6%. Vistra’s payout ratio is 41.94%.
Insider Activity at Vistra
In other news, CEO James A. Burke sold 22,251 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $162.05, for a total value of $3,605,774.55. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 297,998 shares in the company, valued at $48,290,575.90. This represents a 6.95% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Corporate insiders own 1.42% of the company’s stock.
Institutional Investors Weigh In On Vistra
Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Salomon & Ludwin LLC acquired a new position in shares of Vistra in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Quent Capital LLC bought a new stake in Vistra during the third quarter worth approximately $25,000. Twin Peaks Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Vistra in the second quarter valued at $28,000. Archer Investment Corp increased its holdings in shares of Vistra by 2,700.0% in the third quarter. Archer Investment Corp now owns 140 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 135 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Pinpoint Asset Management Singapore Pte. Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Vistra during the 3rd quarter valued at $28,000. 90.88% of the stock is currently owned by 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.