Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) Stock Has Average Target Price of $202.43

Shares of Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) have been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty analysts that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 12 month price objective among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $202.43.

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the company. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price objective on Vistra from $231.00 to $210.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, October 5th. Zacks Research cut shares of Vistra from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 14th. Bank of America reduced their price objective on shares of Vistra from $196.00 to $194.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, October 27th. HSBC began coverage on shares of Vistra in a research note on Thursday, October 22nd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $190.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce decreased their price objective on Vistra from $201.00 to $181.00 and set an “outperformer” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 28th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO James Burke purchased 4,465 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 1st. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $135.25 per share, with a total value of $603,891.25. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer directly owned 1,146,352 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $155,044,108. This trade represents a 0.39% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Scott A. Hudson sold 44,444 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $151.82, for a total transaction of $6,747,488.08. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 331,137 shares in the company, valued at $50,273,219.34. This represents a 11.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 0.92% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Vistra

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of VST. Premier Financial Group bought a new position in Vistra in the second quarter valued at about $34,000. Stonehage Fleming Financial Services Holdings Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Vistra in the second quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Silicon Valley Capital Partners bought a new position in Vistra in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in Vistra by 46.6% in the 1st quarter. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 302 shares of the company’s stock valued at $45,000 after buying an additional 96 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Latitude Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Vistra during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $42,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.88% of the company’s stock.

Vistra Stock Performance

NYSE:VST opened at $139.66 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $145.11 and its 200-day moving average is $153.38. The company has a market cap of $46.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.59 and a beta of 1.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.87, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a current ratio of 0.97. Vistra has a 52-week low of $132.66 and a 52-week high of $196.80.

Vistra (NYSE:VST) last released its earnings results on Friday, August 7th. The company reported $0.76 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.61 by ($0.85). The firm had revenue of $4.02 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.46 billion. Vistra had a return on equity of 108.68% and a net margin of 11.55%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Vistra will post 9.19 earnings per share for the current year.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 22nd will be given a $0.2310 dividend. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. This is a positive change from Vistra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 22nd. Vistra’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 15.54%.

Vistra Company Profile

Vistra Corp. (NYSE: VST) is an integrated energy company based in Irving, Texas. The company operates across electricity generation, power distribution support, energy marketing and retail electricity sales, serving residential, commercial and industrial customers primarily in the United States.

Vistra owns and operates a diverse portfolio of power generation and energy storage facilities. Its assets include natural gas, nuclear, coal and renewable generation, as well as battery storage projects.