FE vs. VST: FirstEnergy vs. Vistra Stock Comparison

November 11, 2026

How do FirstEnergy (FE) and Vistra (VST) stack up? This page sets them side by side across company profile, performance and risk, profitability, growth, financial strength, dividends, and valuation, with selected fundamentals also measured against each stock's industry-group peers.

Company Profile

FirstEnergy (FE) and Vistra (VST) both fall under the Utilities industry group, but FE is classified in Electric Utilities while VST is classified in Independent Power and Renewable Electricity Producers.

Company profile comparison for FirstEnergy (FE) and Vistra (VST)
Profile Item	FE	VST
Name	FirstEnergy Corp.	Vistra Corp.
Country/Region	United States	United States
GICS Sector	Utilities	Utilities
GICS Industry Group	Utilities	Utilities
GICS Industry	Electric Utilities	Independent Power and Renewable Electricity Producers
GICS Sub-Industry	Electric Utilities	Independent Power Producers & Energy Traders
Market Capitalization	26.88 billion USD	42.31 billion USD
Currency	USD	USD
Exchange	NYSE	NYSE
Listing Date	November 10, 1997	October 5, 2016
Security Type	Common Stock	Common Stock

Price Performance

Cumulative Growth

VST

GSPC

FirstEnergy (FE) vs. Vistra (VST), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Growth of a $10,000 investment over the past five years. Adjusted for dividends and splits.

Trailing Returns

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Trailing total returns for FirstEnergy (FE) and Vistra (VST). Returns over one year are annualized.

Calendar-Year Returns

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Calendar-year total returns for FirstEnergy (FE) and Vistra (VST). Each bar is that year's total return, measured year-end to year-end.

Performance Metrics

Price performance metrics for FirstEnergy (FE) and Vistra (VST)
Metric	FE	VST
Total Return (1Y)	5.62%	-30.09%
Total Return (3Y, Annualized)	14.20%	57.95%
Total Return (5Y, Annualized)	8.32%	49.55%

Risk Profile

Drawdown History

VST

GSPC

FirstEnergy (FE) vs. Vistra (VST), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Drawdown from the running peak over the past five years. Each line shows the decline from its prior peak; 0% marks a new high.

Return Distribution

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Distribution of monthly total returns for FirstEnergy (FE) and Vistra (VST). Each bar is the share of months whose return fell in that 5% bucket.

Risk Metrics

Vistra (VST) has an aggressive beta of 1.38, indicating higher sensitivity to broad-market moves, while FirstEnergy (FE) is defensive at 0.39 and tends to be less market-sensitive — they sit on opposite ends of the beta spectrum.

Risk profile metrics for FirstEnergy (FE) and Vistra (VST)
Metric	FE	VST
Volatility (1Y, Annualized)	16.31%	53.39%
Beta (5Y)	0.39	1.38
Max Drawdown (5Y)	-28.59%	-48.80%
Avg. Volume (3M)	4.29M	5.98M

Risk-Adjusted Performance

Risk-Return Positioning

FE and VST are plotted by 1-year volatility (risk) and 1-year return. The dashed Capital Allocation Line runs from the risk-free rate through the shared industry median.

Risk-Adjusted Metrics

Risk-adjusted metrics for FirstEnergy (FE) and Vistra (VST)
Metric	FE	VST
Sharpe Ratio (1Y)	0.08	-0.64
Sortino Ratio (1Y)	0.11	-0.86

Profitability

ROE (TTM)

Capital efficiency shows on one side only: FirstEnergy (FE) earns 10.04% on shareholders’ equity, ranked against its industry; Vistra (VST) has no ROE this period.

FE

Utilities industry group

10.04%

Max: 17.99%
Q3: 12.01%
FE: 10.04%
Median: 9.44%
Q1: 7.56%
Min: 2.17%

VST

Utilities industry group

Max: 17.99%
Q3: 12.01%
Median: 9.44%
Q1: 7.56%
Min: 2.17%
VST: --

FirstEnergy (FE) vs. Vistra (VST): VST does not report ROE, so it has no value marker; FE is benchmarked against the Utilities industry group.

Net Margin (TTM)

Vistra (VST) at 13.15% keeps about the industry-typical share of revenue as profit, while FirstEnergy (FE) at 7.49% retains only a bottom-quartile share.

FE

Utilities industry group

7.49%

Max: 28.78%
Q3: 17.30%
Median: 12.73%
Q1: 9.18%
FE: 7.49%
Min: -0.20%

VST

Utilities industry group

13.15%

Max: 28.78%
Q3: 17.30%
VST: 13.15%
Median: 12.73%
Q1: 9.18%
Min: -0.20%

FirstEnergy (FE) vs. Vistra (VST): A comparison of their net margin against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

Operating Margin (TTM)

Both FirstEnergy (FE) at 21.24% and Vistra (VST) at 31.12% run core operations about as efficiently as their industries’ norm — neither stands out on operating profitability.

FE

Utilities industry group

21.24%

Max: 53.83%
Q3: 31.12%
Median: 23.62%
FE: 21.24%
Q1: 15.45%
Min: -4.90%

VST

Utilities industry group

31.12%

Max: 53.83%
Q3: 31.12%
VST: 31.12%
Median: 23.62%
Q1: 15.45%
Min: -4.90%

FirstEnergy (FE) vs. Vistra (VST): A comparison of their operating margin against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

Profitability Metrics

Profitability metrics for FirstEnergy (FE) and Vistra (VST)
Metric	FE	VST
ROE (TTM)	10.04%	--
ROA (TTM)	3.66%	--
Net Margin (TTM)	7.49%	13.15%
Operating Margin (TTM)	21.24%	31.12%
Gross Margin (TTM)	69.63%	41.52%

Growth

Revenue Growth

FirstEnergy (FE) at 12.01% is around its peer norm for revenue growth, while Vistra (VST) at 2.98% drops into the bottom quartile, signaling weaker demand or pricing momentum.

FirstEnergy (FE) vs. Vistra (VST): A comparison of their Revenue Growth across different time periods.

EPS Growth

FirstEnergy (FE) at 3.53% is around its peer norm for EPS growth, while Vistra (VST) at -69.98% falls below its industry range, a notably weak earnings reading.

FirstEnergy (FE) vs. Vistra (VST): A comparison of their EPS Growth across different time periods.

Growth Metrics

Growth metrics for FirstEnergy (FE) and Vistra (VST)
Metric	FE	VST
Revenue Growth (YoY)	12.01%	2.98%
Revenue Growth (3Y CAGR)	6.59%	8.92%
EPS Growth (YoY)	3.53%	-69.98%
EPS Growth (3Y CAGR)	35.34%	--

Financial Strength

Current Ratio (MRQ)

Short-term liquidity can only be read on one side of this pairing: FirstEnergy (FE) shows current ratio of 0.38 against its industry benchmark, while Vistra (VST) has no reading this period.

FE

Utilities industry group

0.38

Max: 1.90
Q3: 1.17
Median: 0.88
Q1: 0.66
FE: 0.38
Min: 0.29

VST

Utilities industry group

Max: 1.90
Q3: 1.17
Median: 0.88
Q1: 0.66
Min: 0.29
VST: --

FirstEnergy (FE) vs. Vistra (VST): VST does not report current ratio, so it has no value marker; FE is benchmarked against the Utilities industry group.

Debt / Equity (MRQ)

Both balance sheets lean debt-heavy versus peers, but VST is more stretched: FirstEnergy (FE) at 2.07 sits in the higher-leverage quartile and Vistra (VST) at 3.73 is above its industry benchmark range.

FE

Utilities industry group

2.07

Max: 2.63
FE: 2.07
Q3: 1.77
Median: 1.35
Q1: 0.84
Min: 0.00

VST

Utilities industry group

3.73

VST: 3.73
Max: 2.63
Q3: 1.77
Median: 1.35
Q1: 0.84
Min: 0.00

FirstEnergy (FE) vs. Vistra (VST): A comparison of their debt-to-equity ratio against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

Financial Strength Metrics

Financial strength metrics for FirstEnergy (FE) and Vistra (VST)
Metric	FE	VST
Current Ratio (MRQ)	0.38	--
Debt / Equity (MRQ)	2.07	3.73
Net Debt / EBITDA	5.85	--

Dividends

Dividend Yield (TTM)

FirstEnergy (FE) at 3.90% offers top-quartile income, while Vistra (VST) at 0.20% sits in the bottom quartile — a wide gap in cash returned to shareholders.

FE

Utilities industry group

3.90%

Max: 6.66%
FE: 3.90%
Q3: 3.58%
Median: 2.85%
Q1: 0.66%
Min: 0.00%

VST

Utilities industry group

0.20%

Max: 6.66%
Q3: 3.58%
Median: 2.85%
Q1: 0.66%
VST: 0.20%
Min: 0.00%

FirstEnergy (FE) vs. Vistra (VST): A comparison of their dividend yield against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)

Vistra (VST) at 15.35% retains more earnings than its industry usually does; FirstEnergy (FE) at 87.92% distributes an above-typical share — opposite departures from the band, with the risk sitting on FE’s side.

FE

Utilities industry group

87.92%

Max: 113.04%
FE: 87.92%
Q3: 68.72%
Median: 56.38%
Q1: 32.38%
Min: 0.00%

VST

Utilities industry group

15.35%

Max: 113.04%
Q3: 68.72%
Median: 56.38%
Q1: 32.38%
VST: 15.35%
Min: 0.00%

FirstEnergy (FE) vs. Vistra (VST): A comparison of their payout ratio against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

Dividend Metrics

Dividend metrics for FirstEnergy (FE) and Vistra (VST)
Metric	FE	VST
Dividend Yield (TTM)	3.90%	0.20%
Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)	87.92%	15.35%

Valuation

P/E Ratio (TTM)

Both FirstEnergy (FE) at 22.43 and Vistra (VST) at 16.80 land around their industries’ usual P/E ratio levels — neither is getting a clear earnings-multiple discount or premium versus peers.

FE

Utilities industry group

22.43

Max: 31.22
Q3: 23.30
FE: 22.43
Median: 19.64
Q1: 15.17
Min: 3.34

VST

Utilities industry group

16.80

Max: 31.22
Q3: 23.30
Median: 19.64
VST: 16.80
Q1: 15.17
Min: 3.34

FirstEnergy (FE) vs. Vistra (VST): A comparison of their P/E ratio against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

P/S Ratio (TTM)

On P/S ratio, both FirstEnergy (FE) at 1.68 and Vistra (VST) at 2.05 are priced roughly in line with their industries — neither looks cheap nor rich on a sales basis.

FE

Utilities industry group

1.68

Max: 6.35
Q3: 3.63
Median: 2.63
FE: 1.68
Q1: 1.52
Min: 0.00

VST

Utilities industry group

2.05

Max: 6.35
Q3: 3.63
Median: 2.63
VST: 2.05
Q1: 1.52
Min: 0.00

FirstEnergy (FE) vs. Vistra (VST): A comparison of their P/S ratio against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

P/B Ratio (MRQ)

FirstEnergy (FE) at 2.07 sits near its industry’s typical P/B ratio, while Vistra (VST) at 16.10 prices above its benchmark range — VST looks rich relative to book.

FE

Utilities industry group

2.07

Max: 3.12
Q3: 2.21
FE: 2.07
Median: 1.83
Q1: 1.46
Min: 0.34

VST

Utilities industry group

16.10

VST: 16.10
Max: 3.12
Q3: 2.21
Median: 1.83
Q1: 1.46
Min: 0.34

FirstEnergy (FE) vs. Vistra (VST): A comparison of their P/B ratio against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

Valuation Metrics

Valuation metrics for FirstEnergy (FE) and Vistra (VST)
Metric	FE	VST
P/E Ratio (TTM)	22.43	16.80
P/S Ratio (TTM)	1.68	2.05
P/B Ratio (MRQ)	2.07	16.10
Free Cash Flow Yield (TTM)	-9.48%	--