Vistra (NYSE:VST) Trading Down 3.8% Following Analyst Downgrade

Shares of Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) fell 3.8% during trading on Monday after TD Cowen lowered their price target on the stock from $230.00 to $222.00. TD Cowen currently has a buy rating on the stock. Vistra traded as low as $155.54 and last traded at $157.09. 4,474,200 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 9% from the average session volume of 4,943,506 shares. The stock had previously closed at $163.38.

A number of other brokerages have also issued reports on VST. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of Vistra in a research report on Wednesday, July 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of Vistra from $240.00 to $231.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Vistra from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. Raymond James Financial set a $208.00 price objective on shares of Vistra in a report on Monday, April 27th. Finally, Scotiabank upped their price objective on shares of Vistra from $293.00 to $298.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. Three investment 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Vistra presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $230.12.

Insider Transactions at Vistra

In other news, Director Scott B. Helm sold 25,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the director directly owned 232,200 shares in the company, valued at approximately $37,152,000. The trade was a 9.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director John R. Sult sold 6,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $170.00, for a total value of $1,105,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 70,714 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,021,380. The trade was a 8.42% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 41,588 shares of company stock valued at $6,739,227. Company insiders own 0.92% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Vistra

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Fideuram Intesa Sanpaolo Private Banking S.P.A. bought a new stake in Vistra in the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Mcguire Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Vistra during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Kemnay Advisory Services Inc. bought a new position in Vistra during the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Triumph Capital Management bought a new position in Vistra during the third quarter worth about $38,000. Finally, Strive Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in Vistra during the third quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.88% of the company’s stock.

Vistra Stock Down 3.8%

The company has a market capitalization of $52.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.31 and a beta of 1.40. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $156.46 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $158.35. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.51.

Vistra (NYSE:VST) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $2.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.32 by $1.55. The business had revenue of $5.64 billion during 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%. Equities analysts expect that Vistra Corp. will post 9.52 EPS for the current year.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 22nd were paid a dividend of $0.229 per share. This is an increase 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 was Monday, June 22nd. Vistra’s dividend payout ratio is currently 15.41%.

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.