Vistra (NYSE:VST) Stock Price Up 1.7% - What's Next?

Key Points

• Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) shares increased by 1.7%, last trading at $209.99 after reaching a peak of $211.07 during the session, though trading volume was down 43% from the average.
• Analysts remain optimistic about Vistra's future, with multiple brokerages raising their price targets, including Goldman Sachs increasing it to $203.00 and BMO Capital Markets to $236.00, reflecting an overall consensus rating of "Buy."
• The company recently reported a quarterly dividend increase to $0.226, representing an annualized yield of 0.4%, while insiders, including CEO James A. Burke, have recently sold shares valued at over $4 million.

Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST - Get Free Report) shares were up 1.7% during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $211.07 and last traded at $209.99. Approximately 3,787,341 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 43% from the average daily volume of 6,651,417 shares. The stock had previously closed at $206.55.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have issued reports on VST. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on shares of Vistra from $179.00 to $203.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 13th. Scotiabank assumed coverage on shares of Vistra in a research report on Monday, September 22nd. They set a "sector outperform" rating and a $256.00 target price on the stock. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on shares of Vistra from $229.00 to $236.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, October 3rd. Daiwa Capital Markets raised shares of Vistra from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $250.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, September 17th. Finally, UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Vistra from $207.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, July 25th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $227.85.

Vistra Stock Up 1.7%

The firm has a market cap of $71.15 billion, a PE ratio of 33.49, a PEG ratio of 3.06 and a beta of 1.33. The business's 50 day moving average price is $200.69 and its 200 day moving average price is $172.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.58, a current ratio of 0.90 and a quick ratio of 0.80.

Vistra (NYSE:VST - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The company reported $1.01 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.15 billion. On average, equities research analysts expect that Vistra Corp. will post 7 earnings per share for the current year.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Investors of record on Friday, September 19th were paid a $0.226 dividend. This represents a $0.90 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.4%. This is a positive change from Vistra's previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 19th. Vistra's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 14.35%.

Insider Activity at Vistra

In other news, CEO James A. Burke sold 21,376 shares of Vistra stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $201.49, for a total transaction of $4,307,050.24. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 264,329 shares in the company, valued at $53,259,650.21. The trade was a 7.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders have sold 422,389 shares of company stock worth $86,992,610 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 1.42% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of VST. Secure Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in Vistra by 11.9% in the third quarter. Secure Asset Management LLC now owns 1,994 shares of the company's stock valued at $402,000 after acquiring an additional 212 shares in the last quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc increased its stake in Vistra by 19.8% during the third quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 1,614 shares of the company's stock valued at $316,000 after purchasing an additional 267 shares during the last quarter. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in Vistra during the third quarter valued at $39,000. U.S. Capital Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in Vistra by 869.9% during the third quarter. U.S. Capital Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 25,005 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,899,000 after purchasing an additional 22,427 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC increased its stake in Vistra by 5.4% during the third quarter. Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC now owns 3,604 shares of the company's stock valued at $706,000 after purchasing an additional 184 shares during the last quarter. 90.88% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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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