Vistra (NYSE:VST) Shares Up 4.1% – Still a Buy?

Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST)’s share price rose 4.1% on Monday . The company traded as high as $157.24 and last traded at $157.24. 3,352,128 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 34% from the average session volume of 5,075,889 shares. The stock had previously closed at $151.05.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

VST has been the subject of several research reports. Sanford C. Bernstein set a $187.00 price objective on Vistra and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 16th. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $190.00 target price on shares of Vistra in a report on Thursday, May 21st. Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating and set a $210.00 price target on shares of Vistra in a report on Wednesday, June 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of Vistra from $240.00 to $231.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Raymond James Financial set a $208.00 price objective on Vistra in a report on Monday, April 27th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have given a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $230.31.

Vistra Trading Up 4.1%

The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $154.37 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $158.86. The firm has a market capitalization of $53.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.34 and a beta of 1.40. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.51.

Vistra (NYSE:VST) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $2.87 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.32 by $1.55. Vistra had a net margin of 11.52% and a return on equity of 105.64%. The firm had revenue of $5.64 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.22 billion. Equities analysts forecast that Vistra Corp. will post 9.52 earnings per share for the current year.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 22nd were given a dividend of $0.229 per share. This is an increase from Vistra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. This represents a $0.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 22nd. Vistra’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 15.41%.

Insider Transactions at Vistra

In related news, Director John R. Sult sold 6,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.00, for a total value of $1,105,000.00. Following the sale, the director owned 70,714 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,021,380. The trade was a 8.42% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Scott B. Helm sold 25,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $160.00, for a total value of $4,000,000.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 232,200 shares in the company, valued at approximately $37,152,000. The trade was a 9.72% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last three months, insiders sold 41,588 shares of company stock valued at $6,739,227. Corporate insiders own 0.92% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Silverleafe Capital Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Vistra by 7.8% during the second quarter. Silverleafe Capital Partners LLC now owns 7,483 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,187,000 after buying an additional 542 shares in the last quarter. CX Institutional raised its holdings in Vistra by 24.6% in the second quarter. CX Institutional now owns 46,181 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,326,000 after acquiring an additional 9,132 shares in the last quarter. Western Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in Vistra by 58.7% in the first quarter. Western Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,383 shares of the company’s stock worth $509,000 after acquiring an additional 1,251 shares during the last quarter. Wealth High Governance Capital Ltda purchased a new position in Vistra in the first quarter worth approximately $10,543,000. Finally, Wealth High Governance Asset Management Ltda. acquired a new position in Vistra during the 1st quarter worth approximately $8,980,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.88% of the company’s stock.

About Vistra

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.