Vistra (NYSE:VST) Rating Lowered to Hold at Zacks Research

Vistra (NYSE:VST) was downgraded by equities researchers at Zacks Research from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a note issued to investors on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other research firms have also weighed in on VST. BNP Paribas Exane set a $255.00 target price on Vistra in a report on Wednesday. Raymond James Financial set a $208.00 price objective on shares of Vistra in a report on Monday, April 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective 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. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $190.00 target price on shares of Vistra in a report on Thursday, May 21st. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein set a $187.00 price objective on shares of Vistra and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 16th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $226.00.

Vistra Stock Performance

Shares of VST opened at $142.44 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $47.81 billion, a PE ratio of 24.06 and a beta of 1.41. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $154.10 and a 200-day moving average of $156.11. Vistra has a one year low of $132.66 and a one year high of $219.82. 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 posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, August 7th. The company reported $0.76 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.61 by ($0.85). The business had revenue of $4.02 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.46 billion. Vistra had a return on equity of 108.68% and a net margin of 11.55%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Vistra will post 9.23 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Vistra

In related news, CAO Margaret Montemayor sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $164.96, for a total value of $824,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 14,360 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,368,825.60. This represents a 25.83% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Paul M. Barbas sold 244 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $153.00, for a total transaction of $37,332.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 53,006 shares in the company, valued at $8,109,918. This represents a 0.46% 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. Insiders have sold 41,588 shares of company stock valued at $6,739,227 in the last quarter. 0.92% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Vistra

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in Vistra during the second quarter worth about $4,610,496,000. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Vistra in the 4th quarter valued at about $746,729,000. Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its holdings in Vistra by 95.1% during the 1st quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 177,199 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,638,000 after acquiring an additional 86,393 shares during the period. Payden & Rygel grew its position in Vistra by 3,118.2% during the 4th quarter. Payden & Rygel now owns 35,400 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,711,000 after acquiring an additional 34,300 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Signature Estate & Investment Advisors LLC bought a new position in Vistra during the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,875,000. 90.88% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Vistra Company Profile

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.