Vistra (NYSE:VST) Trading 9.2% Higher Following Analyst Upgrade

Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) was up 9.2% during mid-day trading on Friday after BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on the stock from $120.00 to $125.00. BMO Capital Markets currently has an outperform rating on the stock. Vistra traded as high as $102.82 and last traded at $100.99. Approximately 5,994,213 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 8% from the average daily volume of 6,537,883 shares. The stock had previously closed at $92.52.

A number of other research firms have also recently commented on VST. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of Vistra in a report on Friday, September 13th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $99.00 price target on the stock. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of Vistra from $109.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $91.71.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Vistra

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Lone Pine Capital LLC boosted its position in Vistra by 6.6% in the 2nd quarter. Lone Pine Capital LLC now owns 6,838,007 shares of the company’s stock valued at $587,932,000 after buying an additional 425,126 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its holdings in Vistra by 6.2% during the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 4,797,515 shares of the company’s stock worth $184,800,000 after purchasing an additional 282,056 shares during the period. Third Point LLC raised its position in Vistra by 27.6% in the 4th quarter. Third Point LLC now owns 4,600,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $177,192,000 after purchasing an additional 995,748 shares in the last quarter. Castle Hook Partners LP boosted its stake in shares of Vistra by 470.0% in the 1st quarter. Castle Hook Partners LP now owns 3,769,842 shares of the company’s stock valued at $262,569,000 after buying an additional 3,108,511 shares during the period. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in shares of Vistra by 11.5% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 3,519,475 shares of the company’s stock worth $135,570,000 after buying an additional 363,897 shares during the period. 90.88% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Vistra Trading Up 15.1 %

The company’s fifty day moving average is $79.82 and its two-hundred day moving average is $80.21. The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.89. The stock has a market cap of $36.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 64.96 and a beta of 1.08.

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). The business had revenue of $3.85 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.04 billion. Vistra had a net margin of 4.61% and a return on equity of 21.05%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.03 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that Vistra Corp. will post 4.52 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 20th will be issued a $0.2195 dividend. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.82%. This is an increase from Vistra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 20th. Vistra’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 53.37%.

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.