Vistra (NYSE:VST) Stock Price Up 5.1% – Here’s Why

Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) shot up 5.1% on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $167.40 and last traded at $164.17. 8,478,127 shares changed hands during trading, an increase of 61% from the average session volume of 5,275,835 shares. The stock had previously closed at $156.27.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

VST has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Raymond James Financial set a $208.00 price objective on Vistra in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $190.00 target price on shares of Vistra in a report on Thursday, May 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on Vistra from $240.00 to $231.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $241.00 target price on shares of Vistra in a research report on Monday, March 2nd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised Vistra from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $205.00 price objective for the company in a report on Friday, February 6th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $233.33.

Vistra Trading Up 5.1%

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 firm has a 50 day moving average of $154.42 and a 200 day moving average of $162.65. The firm has a market cap of $55.35 billion, a PE ratio of 27.50, a P/E/G ratio of 0.89 and a beta of 1.43.

Vistra (NYSE:VST) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $2.87 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.22 billion. Equities analysts anticipate that Vistra Corp. will post 9.3 earnings per share for the current year.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 22nd will be issued a dividend of $0.229 per share. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 22nd. This is a positive change from Vistra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. Vistra’s payout ratio is presently 15.24%.

Insider Transactions at Vistra

In other Vistra news, EVP Stephanie Zapata Moore sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $160.31, for a total transaction of $1,603,100.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 114,409 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $18,340,906.79. The trade was a 8.04% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.92% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Payden & Rygel increased its stake in Vistra by 3,118.2% in the fourth quarter. Payden & Rygel now owns 35,400 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,711,000 after acquiring an additional 34,300 shares during the last quarter. Signature Estate & Investment Advisors LLC bought a new position in Vistra in the fourth quarter valued at $29,875,000. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC increased its stake in Vistra by 7,556.0% in the fourth quarter. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC now owns 7,656 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,235,000 after acquiring an additional 7,556 shares during the last quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd bought a new position in Vistra in the third quarter valued at $1,445,000. Finally, North Dakota State Investment Board bought a new position in Vistra in the fourth quarter valued at $1,875,000. Institutional investors own 90.88% of the company’s stock.

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.