Vistra (NYSE:VST) Stock Falls 6.7% - What's Next?

Key Points

• Vistra shares fell 6.7% to about $151.53 in heavy trading, with volume 41% above the daily average. The stock has a market capitalization of approximately $50.86 billion.
• Analysts remain broadly positive, with 15 Buy ratings and two Holds producing a “Moderate Buy” consensus and an average price target of $217.61, despite recent target reductions and a downgrade to Hold by Zacks Research.
• Vistra’s latest quarter missed expectations, reporting $0.76 EPS versus $1.61 expected and revenue of $4.02 billion versus $5.46 billion projected. The company raised its quarterly dividend to $0.23 per share, while an executive sold shares under a pre-arranged trading plan and the CEO bought stock.

Shares of Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST - Get Free Report) were down 6.7% during mid-day trading on Wednesday. The company traded as low as $149.66 and last traded at $151.5330. Approximately 7,219,586 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 41% from the average daily volume of 5,123,037 shares. The stock had previously closed at $162.36.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on VST. UBS Group cut their price target on Vistra from $233.00 to $227.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, July 28th. Wells Fargo & Company restated an "overweight" rating and set a $212.00 target price on shares of Vistra in a research report on Monday, August 10th. Siebert Williams Shank started coverage on shares of Vistra in a report on Friday, October 2nd. They issued a "buy" rating and a $202.00 target price for the company. Scotiabank boosted their price target on Vistra from $293.00 to $298.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. Finally, Zacks Research lowered shares of Vistra from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 18th. Fifteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Vistra presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $217.61.

Vistra Stock Down 6.7%

The firm's 50 day moving average price is $144.36 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $151.30. The firm has a market capitalization of $50.86 billion, a PE ratio of 25.60 and a beta of 1.38. The company has a quick ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.87.

Vistra (NYSE:VST - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, August 7th. The company reported $0.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.61 by ($0.85). Vistra had a return on equity of 108.68% and a net margin of 11.55%. The firm had revenue of $4.02 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.46 billion. As a group, research analysts forecast that Vistra Corp. will post 9.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 21st were issued a dividend of $0.23 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 21st. This represents a $0.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.6%. This is a boost from Vistra's previous quarterly dividend of $0.2290. Vistra's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 15.54%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Scott A. Hudson sold 22,222 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $160.14, for a total value of $3,558,631.08. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 308,915 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $49,469,648.10. This trade represents a 6.71% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO James Burke bought 4,465 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 1st. The stock was bought at an average cost of $135.25 per share, for a total transaction of $603,891.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 1,146,352 shares of the company's stock, valued at $155,044,108. This trade represents a 0.39% increase in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.92% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Vistra

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in VST. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in Vistra in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $4,610,496,000. State Street Corp increased its stake in shares of Vistra by 0.5% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 16,850,452 shares of the company's stock worth $2,672,987,000 after acquiring an additional 79,972 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in shares of Vistra by 1.0% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,436,880 shares of the company's stock worth $516,616,000 after acquiring an additional 32,982 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE purchased a new stake in shares of Vistra during the second quarter worth $468,354,000. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new stake in Vistra during the second quarter valued at $381,938,000. 90.88% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Vistra

Vistra Corp. NYSE: VST is an integrated energy company headquartered in Irving, Texas. The company operates electricity generation facilities and provides electricity and related energy services to residential, commercial, and industrial customers. Its portfolio includes natural gas, nuclear, coal, solar, and battery energy storage assets.

Vistra also operates a retail electricity business that offers power plans, renewable energy options, and energy-management services. Its retail brands include TXU Energy, Homefield Energy, Dynegy, and Ambit Energy, serving customers in competitive electricity markets across the United States.

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