Vistra (NYSE:VST) Stock Price Down 7.9%

Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) fell 7.9% during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $78.64 and last traded at $78.68. 1,870,642 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 72% from the average session volume of 6,585,759 shares. The stock had previously closed at $85.43.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on VST shares. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Vistra from $109.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on Vistra from $79.00 to $109.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, May 10th. Finally, UBS Group increased their target price on Vistra from $85.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, May 9th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $87.83.

Vistra Stock Performance

The stock has a market cap of $26.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 46.53 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.89, a current ratio of 0.98 and a quick ratio of 0.88. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $81.16 and its 200-day moving average is $77.85.

Vistra (NYSE:VST) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 8th. The company reported $0.90 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.59 by ($0.69). Vistra had a return on equity of 21.05% and a net margin of 4.61%. The business had revenue of $3.85 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.04 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.03 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Vistra Corp. will post 4.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 20th will be paid a dividend of $0.2195 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 20th. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.16%. This is an increase from Vistra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. Vistra’s dividend payout ratio is currently 53.37%.

Insider Transactions at Vistra

In related news, Director Lisa Crutchfield acquired 335 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 10th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $89.46 per share, with a total value of $29,969.10. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 32,186 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,879,359.56. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders own 1.42% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Vistra

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Castle Hook Partners LP boosted its position in Vistra by 470.0% during the 1st quarter. Castle Hook Partners LP now owns 3,769,842 shares of the company’s stock worth $262,569,000 after purchasing an additional 3,108,511 shares during the period. TD Asset Management Inc grew its stake in shares of Vistra by 9,668.5% in the first quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 2,940,113 shares of the company’s stock valued at $204,779,000 after buying an additional 2,910,015 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Vistra during the 4th quarter valued at about $77,523,000. Electron Capital Partners LLC lifted its position in Vistra by 468.2% during the 4th quarter. Electron Capital Partners LLC now owns 2,128,930 shares of the company’s stock worth $82,006,000 after acquiring an additional 1,754,223 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its holdings in Vistra by 115.3% in the 2nd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 2,532,657 shares of the company’s stock worth $217,758,000 after acquiring an additional 1,356,488 shares during the period. 90.88% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Vistra

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.