Vistra (NYSE:VST) Shares Down 8% - Should You Sell?

Key Points

• Vistra shares fell 8% to about $143.45 in heavy trading, with volume roughly 130% above the average session level.
• Despite the decline, analysts remain bullish: Vistra has a consensus “Buy” rating and an average price target of $229.88, while the company’s latest quarterly earnings and revenue exceeded expectations.
• Vistra declared a quarterly dividend of $0.23 per share, equivalent to $0.92 annually and a 0.6% yield; insiders have sold 41,588 shares worth approximately $6.7 million over the past 90 days.

Shares of Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST - Get Free Report) traded down 8% on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $143.03 and last traded at $143.4450. Approximately 11,458,143 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 130% from the average session volume of 4,986,137 shares. The stock had previously closed at $155.94.

Analyst Ratings Changes

VST has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Sanford C. Bernstein set a $187.00 target price on Vistra and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 16th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Vistra from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a report on Friday. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Vistra from $208.00 to $212.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 28th. Scotiabank lifted their price objective on Vistra from $293.00 to $298.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. Finally, UBS Group lowered their target price on Vistra from $233.00 to $227.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, July 28th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Vistra currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $229.88.

Vistra Stock Down 8.0%

The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.51. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $156.52 and a 200-day simple moving average of $157.85. The company has a market cap of $48.37 billion, a PE ratio of 24.03 and a beta of 1.41.

Vistra (NYSE:VST - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $2.87 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.32 by $1.55. Vistra had a return on equity of 105.64% and a net margin of 11.52%.The business had revenue of $5.64 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.22 billion. Equities research analysts anticipate that Vistra Corp. will post 9.39 EPS for the current year.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 21st will be issued a dividend of $0.23 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 21st. This is a positive change from Vistra's previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. This represents a $0.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.6%. Vistra's payout ratio is 15.41%.

Insider Activity at Vistra

In other news, Director Paul M. Barbas sold 244 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $153.00, for a total transaction of $37,332.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 53,006 shares of the company's stock, valued at $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 available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CAO Margaret Montemayor sold 4,600 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $160.00, for a total transaction of $736,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 9,760 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,561,600. This trade represents a 32.03% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 41,588 shares of company stock worth $6,739,227 in the last ninety days. 0.92% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Vistra

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Fideuram Intesa Sanpaolo Private Banking S.P.A. acquired a new stake in Vistra during the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Mcguire Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in Vistra during the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Kemnay Advisory Services Inc. acquired a new stake in Vistra in the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. Strive Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in Vistra in the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, Salomon & Ludwin LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Vistra by 74.8% during the 4th quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 215 shares of the company's stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 92 shares during the last quarter. 90.88% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.

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