Vistra (NYSE:VST) Shares Down 2.1%

Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) shares dropped 2.1% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $116.38 and last traded at $116.57. Approximately 4,463,300 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 34% from the average daily volume of 6,741,174 shares. The stock had previously closed at $119.08.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently commented on VST shares. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on shares of Vistra from $99.00 to $137.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on Vistra from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, September 20th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Vistra from $110.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $110.83.

Vistra Stock Performance

The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $82.05 and its 200 day simple moving average is $81.83. The company has a market capitalization of $39.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 71.52 and a beta of 1.08. 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 posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 8th. The company reported $0.90 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.59 by ($0.69). Vistra had a return on equity of 21.05% and a net margin of 4.61%. The firm had revenue of $3.85 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.04 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.03 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Vistra Corp. will post 4.78 EPS for the current year.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 20th will be issued a dividend of $0.2195 per share. This is an increase from Vistra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 20th. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.76%. Vistra’s payout ratio is currently 53.99%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Vistra

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Atria Investments Inc purchased a new stake in shares of Vistra in the first quarter worth approximately $1,675,000. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky lifted its position in Vistra by 41.2% in the 4th quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky now owns 115,600 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,453,000 after buying an additional 33,738 shares in the last quarter. Stephens Inc. AR boosted its stake in shares of Vistra by 633.7% during the 4th quarter. Stephens Inc. AR now owns 58,668 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,260,000 after buying an additional 50,672 shares during the period. Intech Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Vistra by 8.1% during the 2nd quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 206,648 shares of the company’s stock valued at $17,768,000 after buying an additional 15,407 shares during the period. Finally, Banco Santander S.A. purchased a new position in shares of Vistra during the 1st quarter valued at $673,000. 90.88% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Vistra Company Profile

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.