Vistra (NYSE:VST) Shares Down 2.7% – What’s Next?

Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST)’s stock price was down 2.7% on Thursday . The company traded as low as $153.77 and last traded at $154.0670. Approximately 7,802,550 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 53% from the average daily volume of 5,102,930 shares. The stock had previously closed at $158.29.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on VST shares. Raymond James Financial set a $208.00 target price on shares of Vistra in a report on Monday, April 27th. TD Cowen lowered their target price on shares of Vistra from $253.00 to $230.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Vistra from $230.00 to $233.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 12th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Vistra from $236.00 to $234.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 27th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Vistra in a research note on Friday, March 27th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $233.93.

Vistra Trading Down 2.7%

The firm has a market capitalization of $52.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 71.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.93 and a beta of 1.43. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $159.59 and its 200 day moving average is $166.90. The company has a quick ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.01.

Vistra (NYSE:VST) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $2.90 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.46 by $1.44. The business had revenue of $5.64 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.22 billion. Vistra had a net margin of 5.32% and a return on equity of 81.09%. Equities analysts forecast that Vistra Corp. will post 9.16 earnings per share for the current year.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 22nd will be issued a dividend of $0.229 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 22nd. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.6%. This is an increase from Vistra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. Vistra’s payout ratio is 41.94%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Vistra

In other news, EVP Stephanie Zapata Moore sold 10,000 shares of the firm’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 transaction, the executive vice president owned 114,409 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,340,906.79. This trade represents a 8.04% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.92% 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 the company. Quent Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Vistra in the third quarter valued at $25,000. Fideuram Intesa Sanpaolo Private Banking S.P.A. acquired a new stake in Vistra in the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Archer Investment Corp increased its holdings in shares of Vistra by 2,700.0% in the third quarter. Archer Investment Corp now owns 140 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 135 shares during the last quarter. Pinpoint Asset Management Singapore Pte. Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Vistra in the third quarter valued at $28,000. Finally, Mcguire Capital Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Vistra in the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. 90.88% of the stock is currently 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.