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Vistra (NYSE:VST) +6.3% in Friday’s trading after Jefferies called the stock its top pick in the power sector, with new Buy ratings for Vistra and Talen Energy (TLN) as it launches coverage of the area with a “constructive” view, although high volatility makes it “not for the faint of heart.”
Vistra (VST) has “many ways to win,” analyst Julien Dumoulin-Smith says, noting the company’s years of acquisitions, rationalizations, and lessons learned about risk have positioned it well for today’s power markets.
Vistra’s (VST) timely acquisition of nuclear portfolio Energy Harbor in 2023 gives the company a coveted nuclear portfolio, Dumoulin-Smith says, providing “a traditional opportunity set of collocating a data center at one of its nuclear plants but its efficient gas fleet can profit from higher volume,” even as the analyst does not embed a material increase to natural gas volumes, “the biggest upside angle.”
Separately, Jefferies initiates Public Service Enterprise Group (PEG) at Hold with an $85 price target, believing the easy money has been made after the stock’s recent relative strength.
A successful data center deal would be positive for PSEG (PEG) shares, but analyst Paul Zimbardo says investors should wait for a better entry point.
