Vistra (NYSE:VST) Upgraded at Zacks Research

Zacks Research upgraded shares of Vistra (NYSE:VST) from a hold rating to a strong-buy rating in a report published on Monday morning,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other equities research analysts have also commented on VST. TD Cowen reduced their price objective on shares of Vistra from $253.00 to $230.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Sanford C. Bernstein set a $187.00 target price on shares of Vistra and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 16th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a $190.00 target price on shares of Vistra in a report on Thursday, May 21st. Raymond James Financial set a $208.00 price target on shares of Vistra in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded Vistra from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Thursday, July 16th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Vistra has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $230.62.

Vistra Price Performance

Vistra stock opened at $166.59 on Monday. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $155.05 and its 200 day moving average is $158.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.51, a current ratio of 0.90 and a quick ratio of 0.79. The firm has a market cap of $56.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.90 and a beta of 1.40. Vistra has a one year low of $132.66 and a one year high of $219.82.

Vistra (NYSE:VST) last released its 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 business had revenue of $5.64 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.22 billion. As a group, research analysts expect that Vistra will post 9.53 EPS for the current year.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 22nd were paid a $0.229 dividend. This is a positive change from Vistra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 22nd. This represents a $0.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. Vistra’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 15.41%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Vistra news, Director Paul M. Barbas sold 244 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $153.00, for a total value of $37,332.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 53,006 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,109,918. The trade was a 0.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction 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, Director John R. Sult sold 6,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $170.00, for a total transaction of $1,105,000.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 70,714 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,021,380. The trade was a 8.42% decrease in their position. 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 owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Vistra

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Empowered Funds LLC grew its stake in Vistra by 24.1% in the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 20,190 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,371,000 after buying an additional 3,920 shares in the last quarter. Woodline Partners LP raised its holdings in Vistra by 40.7% during the 1st quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 28,744 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,376,000 after acquiring an additional 8,312 shares during the period. Focus Partners Wealth lifted its position in shares of Vistra by 37.3% during the first quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 7,828 shares of the company’s stock worth $920,000 after acquiring an additional 2,125 shares in the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Vistra during the second quarter worth $269,000. Finally, Slocum Gordon & Co LLP boosted its holdings in shares of Vistra by 20.0% in the second quarter. Slocum Gordon & Co LLP now owns 1,200 shares of the company’s stock worth $233,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.88% of the company’s stock.

Key Stories Impacting Vistra

Here are the key news stories impacting Vistra this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Zacks Research upgraded Vistra Corp. (VST) from “hold” to “strong-buy,” reinforcing a more bullish outlook from analysts. Zacks.com
• Positive Sentiment: Recent coverage argued that Vistra (VST) could be a solid growth stock with the potential for strong returns, which may be supporting investor optimism. Yahoo Finance article
• Positive Sentiment: Another report noted that Vistra Corp. (VST) has been outpacing the broader market, reflecting momentum in the shares and encouraging traders to stay bullish. Yahoo Finance article
• Neutral Sentiment: Investors are also awaiting Vistra’s Q2 2026 earnings, with pre-earnings coverage focused on what results and guidance could mean for the stock next. MSN article

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.