Vistra (NYSE:VST) EVP Scott Hudson Sells 44,444 Shares

Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) EVP Scott Hudson sold 44,444 shares of the firm’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 sale, the executive vice president owned 331,137 shares in the company, valued at approximately $50,273,219.34. This trade represents a 11.83% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan.

Vistra Stock Down 2.4%

VST stock opened at $147.41 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $49.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.90 and a beta of 1.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.87, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a current ratio of 0.97. Vistra Corp. has a one year low of $132.66 and a one year high of $219.82. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $148.87 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $154.08.

Vistra (NYSE:VST) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, August 7th. The company reported $0.76 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.61 by ($0.85). Vistra had a return on equity of 108.68% and a net margin of 11.55%.The business had revenue of $4.02 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.46 billion. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Vistra Corp. will post 9.21 EPS for the current year.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Investors of record on Monday, September 21st will be given a dividend of $0.23 per share. This represents a $0.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.6%. This is a boost from Vistra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 21st. Vistra’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 15.54%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Vistra

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. California State Teachers Retirement System grew its holdings in shares of Vistra by 15,825.6% during the 2nd quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 62,386,324 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,896,343,000 after purchasing an additional 61,994,589 shares during the period. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in Vistra during the second quarter valued at approximately $4,610,496,000. State Street Corp lifted its position in Vistra by 2.7% during the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 16,474,869 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,657,891,000 after buying an additional 432,028 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Vistra by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,965,648 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,441,112,000 after buying an additional 97,424 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Vistra during the fourth quarter worth approximately $746,729,000. 90.88% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have commented on the company. Scotiabank lifted their price target on Vistra from $293.00 to $298.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Zacks Research lowered shares of Vistra from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 18th. BNP Paribas Exane set a $255.00 target price on shares of Vistra in a research report on Wednesday, August 19th. Seaport Research Partners restated a “buy” rating and issued a $230.00 target price on shares of Vistra in a report on Monday, June 15th. Finally, Mizuho started coverage on shares of Vistra in a research report on Monday, August 24th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $169.00 price target for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have given a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $223.53.

Vistra News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Vistra this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Vistra priced a $1.5 billion offering of junior subordinated notes, consisting of $850 million of Series A notes and $650 million of Series B notes due 2057. The financing could support strategic investments and expansion tied to rising power demand. Vistra Prices Registered Offering of $1.5 Billion of Junior Subordinated Notes
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst commentary remains constructive. Vistra’s hedging, long-term power purchase agreements, diversified 43,641-megawatt generation fleet and exposure to ERCOT and PJM provide earnings visibility as data-center, industrial and electrification demand grows. The Cogentrix acquisition and long-term nuclear agreements with Meta and AWS are viewed as potential growth catalysts. Vistra: Cogentrix And Meta Can Offset A Softer ERCOT Outlook
• Positive Sentiment: Several recent research notes maintain Buy or Moderate Buy ratings, citing improving EBITDA expectations, potential guidance upside and a favorable long-term power-demand outlook. One analysis estimates fair value above the current trading range based on core operations alone. Vistra Receives Consensus Recommendation of Moderate Buy
• Neutral Sentiment: Executive Vice President Scott Hudson sold 44,444 shares worth approximately $6.75 million under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. While the sale reduces his holdings by 11.83%, the planned nature of the transaction limits its signal about management’s current outlook. SEC Insider Transaction Filing
• Negative Sentiment: The debt issuance increases financing obligations for a company that already carries substantial leverage. Commentary also notes that the Cogentrix acquisition may raise leverage and dilute the impact of recent share buybacks, while softer ERCOT conditions could pressure near-term results. VST Stock Outperforms Industry in the Past 3 Months

Vistra Company Profile

Vistra Corp. is an integrated energy company headquartered in Irving, Texas. The company operates electricity generation and retail energy businesses, serving residential, commercial, industrial and wholesale customers primarily across the United States.

Vistra’s generation portfolio includes natural gas, nuclear, coal, solar and battery energy storage facilities. Through its retail operations, the company provides electricity, natural gas and renewable energy plans under brands that include TXU Energy, Dynegy, Homefield Energy and Ambit Energy.

The company was established in 2016 following the separation of Energy Future Holdings’ competitive energy businesses.