Melius Begins Coverage on Vistra (NYSE:VST)

Key Points

• Melius has initiated coverage on Vistra (NYSE:VST) with a buy rating and a price target of $295.00, suggesting a 52.60% potential upside from its previous close.
• The stock has received positive ratings from multiple analysts, with an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $199.93.
• Vistra recently reported earnings of $1.01 per share, missing expectations, and had a revenue of $4.25 billion compared to estimates of $5.15 billion for the quarter.

Investment analysts at Melius initiated coverage on shares of Vistra (NYSE:VST - Get Free Report) in a report released on Wednesday,Briefing.com Automated Import reports. The brokerage set a "buy" rating and a $295.00 price target on the stock. Melius' price objective would indicate a potential upside of 52.60% from the stock's previous close.

A number of other equities analysts have also commented on the company. UBS Group increased their price target on Vistra from $207.00 to $230.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, July 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on Vistra from $179.00 to $203.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 13th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on Vistra from $191.00 to $229.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 12th. Raymond James Financial began coverage on Vistra in a research note on Friday, June 13th. They issued a "strong-buy" rating and a $216.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Vistra from $178.00 to $186.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 18th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $199.93.

Vistra Price Performance

Shares of Vistra stock opened at $193.3210 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $193.06 and a 200 day moving average of $157.80. Vistra has a 12 month low of $72.90 and a 12 month high of $216.85. The firm has a market cap of $65.50 billion, a PE ratio of 30.83, a PEG ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.58.

Vistra (NYSE:VST - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The company reported $1.01 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.63 by ($0.62). Vistra had a net margin of 12.90% and a return on equity of 108.41%. The firm had revenue of $4.25 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.15 billion. On average, research analysts expect that Vistra will post 7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director John R. Sult sold 25,000 shares of Vistra stock in a transaction on Friday, June 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $171.67, for a total value of $4,291,750.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 75,946 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,037,649.82. This trade represents a 24.77% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Scott B. Helm sold 50,000 shares of Vistra stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $172.75, for a total value of $8,637,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 255,192 shares in the company, valued at $44,084,418. This represents a 16.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 110,000 shares of company stock worth $18,579,650. 1.42% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Vistra

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Amalgamated Bank boosted its position in shares of Vistra by 1.9% in the 1st quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 73,908 shares of the company's stock worth $8,680,000 after purchasing an additional 1,387 shares in the last quarter. Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Vistra in the 1st quarter worth $341,000. Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Vistra in the 1st quarter worth $432,000. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Vistra by 29.1% in the 1st quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 255,629 shares of the company's stock worth $30,021,000 after purchasing an additional 57,551 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Vistra by 12.9% in the 1st quarter. Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC now owns 1,955 shares of the company's stock worth $230,000 after purchasing an additional 224 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.88% of the company's stock.

Vistra Company Profile

Vistra Corp., together with its subsidiaries, operates as an integrated retail electricity and power generation company. The company operates through six segments: Retail, Texas, East, West, Sunset, and Asset Closure. It retails electricity and natural gas to residential, commercial, and industrial customers across states in the United States and the District of Columbia.

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