Vistra (NYSE:VST) Trading 7% Higher – Here’s Why
by Teresa Graham · The Cerbat GemVistra Corp. (NYSE:VST – Get Free Report) traded up 7% during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $144.90 and last traded at $144.1540. 7,868,716 shares changed hands during trading, an increase of 51% from the average session volume of 5,219,959 shares. The stock had previously closed at $134.71.
Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth
Several equities research analysts recently commented on the company. TD Cowen decreased their target price on Vistra from $253.00 to $230.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $190.00 price objective on shares of Vistra in a research note on Thursday. The Goldman Sachs Group raised Vistra from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $205.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Friday, February 6th. BMO Capital Markets reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $241.00 price objective on shares of Vistra in a research note on Monday, March 2nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised Vistra from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $233.33.
Get Our Latest Stock Analysis on VST
Vistra Stock Performance
The company has a market cap of $52.73 billion, a PE ratio of 26.20, a PEG ratio of 0.82 and a beta of 1.43. 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 company has a 50-day moving average of $154.54 and a 200-day moving average of $163.12.
Vistra (NYSE:VST – Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $2.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.32 by $1.55. The company had revenue of $5.64 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.22 billion. Vistra had a return on equity of 105.64% and a net margin of 11.52%. As a group, analysts anticipate that Vistra Corp. will post 9.31 earnings per share for the current year.
Vistra Increases Dividend
The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Investors of record on Monday, June 22nd will be given a dividend of $0.229 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 22nd. This is a positive change from Vistra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. This represents a $0.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.6%. Vistra’s payout ratio is presently 15.24%.
Insider Buying and Selling
In related news, EVP Stephanie Zapata Moore sold 10,000 shares of Vistra stock in a transaction on Monday, March 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $160.31, for a total transaction of $1,603,100.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 114,409 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,340,906.79. This trade represents a 8.04% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 0.92% of the company’s stock.
Institutional Trading of Vistra
Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Fideuram Intesa Sanpaolo Private Banking S.P.A. bought a new stake in Vistra during the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Archer Investment Corp lifted its holdings in Vistra by 2,700.0% during the third quarter. Archer Investment Corp now owns 140 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 135 shares during the period. Pinpoint Asset Management Singapore Pte. Ltd. bought a new stake in Vistra during the third quarter worth $28,000. Mcguire Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in Vistra during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Finally, Orion Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Vistra during the third quarter worth $29,000. 90.88% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.
About Vistra
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.