Vistra (NYSE:VST) Stock Price Up 6.7% – What’s Next?

Shares of Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) traded up 6.7% on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $182.56 and last traded at $180.25. 7,008,376 shares traded hands during trading, an increase of 2% from the average session volume of 6,893,061 shares. The stock had previously closed at $168.97.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

VST has been the subject of several research reports. Bank of America decreased their price target on shares of Vistra from $231.00 to $218.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 12th. Scotiabank raised their target price on shares of Vistra from $287.00 to $293.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, January 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Vistra from $249.00 to $233.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, December 16th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Vistra in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Evercore ISI raised their price target on Vistra from $237.00 to $243.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 7th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $239.40.

Vistra Stock Down 7.4%

The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $169.20 and its 200 day simple moving average is $187.84. The company has a market cap of $56.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 60.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 1.41. The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.74.

Vistra (NYSE:VST) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, November 7th. The company reported $1.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.78 by ($0.03). Vistra had a return on equity of 64.04% and a net margin of 6.70%.The business had revenue of $4.97 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.60 billion. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Vistra Corp. will post 7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 22nd were paid a $0.227 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 22nd. This is a positive change from Vistra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. This represents a $0.91 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. Vistra’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 32.85%.

Insider Activity at Vistra

In other Vistra news, EVP Scott A. Hudson sold 56,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $168.86, for a total transaction of $9,456,160.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 306,600 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $51,772,476. This trade represents a 15.44% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO James A. Burke sold 22,251 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $162.05, for a total transaction of $3,605,774.55. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 297,998 shares in the company, valued at $48,290,575.90. This trade represents a 6.95% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 278,995 shares of company stock valued at $50,757,547 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 1.42% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Kirr Marbach & Co. LLC IN raised its stake in shares of Vistra by 0.9% in the second quarter. Kirr Marbach & Co. LLC IN now owns 168,713 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,698,000 after acquiring an additional 1,535 shares during the last quarter. ELCO Management Co. LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Vistra in the second quarter valued at approximately $499,000. FUKOKU MUTUAL LIFE INSURANCE Co acquired a new stake in shares of Vistra in the second quarter valued at approximately $292,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in Vistra by 1.7% in the 2nd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,099,120 shares of the company’s stock worth $406,830,000 after purchasing an additional 35,444 shares during the last quarter. Finally, BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. lifted its holdings in Vistra by 55.3% during the 2nd quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. now owns 6,232 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,208,000 after buying an additional 2,220 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.88% of the company’s stock.

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.