Vistra (NYSE:VST) Shares Down 3.9% on Analyst Downgrade

Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) shares were down 3.9% during trading on Tuesday after UBS Group lowered their price target on the stock from $157.00 to $150.00. UBS Group currently has a buy rating on the stock. Vistra traded as low as $124.70 and last traded at $125.30. Approximately 1,979,024 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 72% from the average daily volume of 6,967,498 shares. The stock had previously closed at $130.38.

Several other research analysts have also recently commented on the stock. Guggenheim raised their target price on shares of Vistra from $133.00 to $177.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Vistra from $110.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, September 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. started coverage on shares of Vistra in a report on Thursday, October 17th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $178.00 target price on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on shares of Vistra from $105.00 to $141.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $146.00 price target (up previously from $125.00) on shares of Vistra in a research report on Friday, October 4th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $145.30.

Institutional Trading of Vistra

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in VST. Mather Group LLC. acquired a new stake in Vistra in the first quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Redwood Wealth Management Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Vistra during the second quarter worth $26,000. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Vistra during the third quarter worth $30,000. New Covenant Trust Company N.A. acquired a new position in shares of Vistra during the first quarter worth $32,000. Finally, CVA Family Office LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Vistra by 1,505.9% during the third quarter. CVA Family Office LLC now owns 273 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 256 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.88% of the company’s stock.

Vistra Trading Up 0.9 %

The company has a market cap of $43.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 92.73 and a beta of 1.10. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $102.66 and its 200 day moving average price is $90.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.89, a current ratio of 0.98 and a quick ratio of 0.88.

Vistra (NYSE:VST) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 8th. The company reported $0.90 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.59 by ($0.69). The business had revenue of $3.85 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.04 billion. Vistra had a return on equity of 21.05% and a net margin of 4.61%. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.03 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Vistra Corp. will post 4.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 30th. Investors of record on Friday, September 20th were paid a dividend of $0.2195 per share. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.70%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 20th. This is an increase from Vistra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. Vistra’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 64.71%.

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.