Vistra (NYSE:VST) Stock Price Down 5.2%

Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST - Get Free Report)'s share price was down 5.2% during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $64.91 and last traded at $65.10. Approximately 3,813,377 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 24% from the average daily volume of 4,990,870 shares. The stock had previously closed at $68.65.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have commented on VST shares. Evercore ISI boosted their price target on shares of Vistra from $72.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. Morgan Stanley restated an "overweight" rating and set a $78.00 price objective on shares of Vistra in a report on Monday, March 25th. Janney Montgomery Scott assumed coverage on Vistra in a report on Thursday. They issued a "buy" rating and a $82.00 target price on the stock. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on Vistra from $52.00 to $60.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, March 4th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $67.20.

Vistra Trading Down 4.1 %

The firm has a market cap of $22.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.40 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a 50 day moving average of $60.61 and a 200 day moving average of $44.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.26, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 1.18.

Vistra (NYSE:VST - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 28th. The company reported ($0.48) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.54 by ($1.02). The firm had revenue of $3.08 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.48 billion. Vistra had a net margin of 10.10% and a return on equity of 20.05%. Analysts predict that Vistra Corp. will post 4.24 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 29th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 20th were paid a $0.215 dividend. This is a boost from Vistra's previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 19th. This represents a $0.86 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.31%. Vistra's payout ratio is presently 24.02%.

Insider Activity at Vistra

In other Vistra news, EVP Carrie Lee Kirby sold 72,748 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.63, for a total transaction of $4,556,207.24. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 184,201 shares of the company's stock, valued at $11,536,508.63. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, EVP Carrie Lee Kirby sold 72,748 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.63, for a total value of $4,556,207.24. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 184,201 shares of the company's stock, valued at $11,536,508.63. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Stephanie Zapata Moore sold 98,020 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.50, for a total value of $5,734,170.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 161,888 shares of the company's stock, valued at $9,470,448. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 257,285 shares of company stock valued at $15,404,397. 1.42% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in Vistra by 17.4% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,108 shares of the company's stock worth $147,000 after purchasing an additional 312 shares during the period. Lindbrook Capital LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Vistra by 64.4% during the fourth quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 840 shares of the company's stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 329 shares during the period. Mather Group LLC. bought a new position in shares of Vistra during the first quarter valued at $26,000. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale lifted its holdings in shares of Vistra by 2.3% during the fourth quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 17,214 shares of the company's stock valued at $662,000 after acquiring an additional 384 shares during the period. Finally, Advisors Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Vistra by 3.8% during the third quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 11,090 shares of the company's stock valued at $368,000 after acquiring an additional 405 shares during the period. 90.88% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Vistra

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.