Sanford C. Bernstein Reaffirms “Outperform” Rating for Vistra (NYSE:VST)

Vistra (NYSE:VST)‘s stock had its “outperform” rating reaffirmed by analysts at Sanford C. Bernstein in a report released on Friday, Benzinga reports. They presently have a $181.00 price target on the stock. Sanford C. Bernstein‘s target price would indicate a potential upside of 45.35% from the company’s previous close.

Other analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. Williams Trading set a $202.00 target price on shares of Vistra in a research report on Friday, October 2nd. Seaport Research Partners cut their price target on shares of Vistra from $226.00 to $202.00 in a report on Monday. Raymond James Financial set a $176.00 price target on shares of Vistra in a report on Wednesday, October 21st. Mizuho initiated coverage on shares of Vistra in a research note on Monday, August 24th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $169.00 price objective for the company. Finally, TD Cowen decreased their price objective on shares of Vistra from $222.00 to $221.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, August 19th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have assigned a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Vistra has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $205.00.

Vistra Stock Up 10.3%

NYSE:VST traded up $11.64 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $124.53. The stock had a trading volume of 9,947,958 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,298,285. The business’s 50 day moving average is $144.19 and its 200 day moving average is $152.81. Vistra has a fifty-two week low of $110.89 and a fifty-two week high of $196.80. The stock has a market cap of $41.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.04 and a beta of 1.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.87, a current ratio of 0.97 and a quick ratio of 0.87.

Vistra (NYSE:VST) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, November 6th. The company reported $3.25 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.98 by $0.27. The firm had revenue of $6.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.03 billion. Vistra had a net margin of 11.55% and a return on equity of 108.68%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Vistra will post 8.92 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Vistra news, EVP Scott A. Hudson sold 44,444 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 331,137 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $50,273,219.34. This represents a 11.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO James Burke purchased 4,465 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 1st. The shares were bought at an average price of $135.25 per share, for a total transaction of $603,891.25. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer owned 1,146,352 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $155,044,108. The trade was a 0.39% increase in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.92% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Vistra

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Apella Capital LLC raised its holdings in Vistra by 2.6% in the 3rd quarter. Apella Capital LLC now owns 2,728 shares of the company’s stock worth $377,000 after acquiring an additional 69 shares during the period. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC lifted its position in Vistra by 2.3% during the 3rd quarter. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC now owns 3,400 shares of the company’s stock worth $470,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares during the last quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. lifted its position in Vistra by 5.3% during the 2nd quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 1,728 shares of the company’s stock worth $274,000 after acquiring an additional 87 shares during the last quarter. Portfolio Design Labs LLC lifted its position in Vistra by 1.2% during the 2nd quarter. Portfolio Design Labs LLC now owns 7,348 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,166,000 after acquiring an additional 87 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First National Bank of Hutchinson boosted its holdings in Vistra by 2.0% during the first quarter. First National Bank of Hutchinson now owns 4,521 shares of the company’s stock valued at $680,000 after acquiring an additional 90 shares during the period. 90.88% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Vistra News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Vistra this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Vistra reported Q3 net income of $1.14 billion and ongoing-operations Adjusted EBITDA of $2.378 billion, up more than 50% year over year. EPS of $3.25 exceeded the cited analyst consensus of $2.98. The company also raised its 2026 outlook, supporting expectations for stronger earnings. Vistra Q3 results
• Positive Sentiment: The company announced a $1.5 billion share-buyback authorization, which could return capital to shareholders and provide support for the stock. Vistra earnings and buyback report
• Neutral Sentiment: Q3 revenue descriptions were mixed: some coverage characterized revenue as below expectations, while other reported figures showed it ahead of estimates. Investors may weigh this alongside the stronger profit and guidance. Vistra revenue coverage
• Negative Sentiment: Texas election results have raised uncertainty about potential policy changes affecting data-center growth and future power demand. KeyBanc’s downgrade and earlier analyst estimate cuts have added to caution, though BMO maintained an outperform rating despite lowering its price target. KeyBanc downgrade and Texas policy concerns

About Vistra

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.