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Why Vistra Stock Jumped To Another Record High On Thursday

The gains keep coming for shares of independent power producer Vistra Corp. (VST), which jumped more than 5% on Thursday to notch one of the best performances in the S&P 500 and set a new record closing high.

The Texas-based electricity provider has ridden a wave of enthusiasm about using nuclear capacity to power energy-intensive artificial intelligence (AI) processes. These AI-driven expectations have helped Vistra surpass Nvidia (NVDA) as the top-performing stock in the S&P 500 in 2024, up a whopping 244% year to date.

The most recent push higher for the red-hot Vistra stock came after Sundar Pichai, CEO of Google parent Alphabet (GOOGL), said the tech giant is exploring ways to power its data centers using electricity from nuclear plants.

Vistra shares gained 5.7% on Thursday to close at $132.45, bucking a broader downturn for U.S. stocks.

In an interview with Japan's , Pichai said Google is evaluating investments in a variety of energy technologies as it aims to achieve its ambitious goal of net-zero carbon emissions by 2030.

The CEO provided no details as to where Alphabet might source nuclear power. However, announcements this year by other big tech firms support the idea that U.S.-based nuclear generators are poised to benefit from the opportunity.

For instance, Amazon (AMZN) said in March that it would lean on nuclear generation to meet some of its power demand. Microsoft (MSFT) also reached an agreement in September with Vistra competitor Constellation Energy (CEG) to procure power from the currently shuttered Three Mile Island nuclear plant in Pennsylvania.

Analysts have expressed optimism that Microsoft's deal with Constellation Energy could set a precedent for more agreements between big tech and nuclear generators. On Thursday, analysts at RBC Capital Markets increased their price target on Vistra stock to $141 from $105.

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Instablog9ja

From Private Jets To Life Lessons: Former Nigerian Striker Jonathan Akpoborie Warns Young Footballers About The Cost Of Living Large

Former Nigerian striker, Jonathan Akpoborie, has cautioned young footballers against living lavish lifestyles.

Speaking in an interview with Elegbete TV Sports, the 55-year-old said: “I grew up in Ajegunle. I saw everywhere before I travelled from Nigeria. There is always a difference, you know, when you close your eyes. As I’m here now, in the evening, my friends might call me and I am in Ajegunle.

Sometimes, I am coming back from America, I drop my bag at home here, and I am in Ajegunle. That difference — you close your eyes and you are in Ajegunle. If you cannot learn from that, there is nothing that will be able to teach you.

The problem when you have money, it pushes you to do a lot of things. If you don’t get control, you will lose it, and when you lose it, it is a deep fall. That is why I am praying for these young ones that are playing now that they should be very wise.

I remember when I was in Stuttgart, we did so many things. Sometimes, after a game, seven or eight people would come together, and we’d take a private jet to Spain, rent a villa, stay overnight, and do whatever we wanted. The next morning, the jet would fly us back. That’s the power of money.

When I was in Stuttgart, every two weeks I’d be in Lagos, staying at the Sheraton Hotel. I’d be in the room, and by Sunday or Monday, I’d be back in Germany. My family wouldn’t know, nobody would know.

Money pushes you like that. That’s why I pray the young ones will be wise and start acting responsibly. When money pushes you, you’ll do things you won’t even believe you’re doing.”

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Investopedia

Court Victory Allows Biden's Student Loan Forgiveness Plan To Proceed

A legal victory for President Joe Biden's administration has removed an obstacle standing in the way of student loan forgiveness for millions of borrowers. 

A federal judge in Georgia late Wednesday allowed a temporary block on Biden's latest student loan forgiveness program to expire. The expiration of the block was a setback for Republican states who filed a lawsuit seeking to prevent the $147 billion program from going into effect.

Missouri and seven other states had sued to stop Biden's second attempt at student loan forgiveness, arguing the new rules are unconstitutional. Judge J. Randal Hall in early September temporarily blocked the program while the case was considered, but ruled on Thursday that the case must be heard in Missouri, not Georgia, because the state of Georgia did not have legal standing to sue.

Biden’s Department of Education created the latest debt forgiveness program after the Supreme Court struck down an earlier attempt that would have wiped out up to $20,000 of student loan debt per borrower.

The latest iteration was scheduled to go into effect as early as this month before it was blocked. The program would forgive some or all of the federal student loan debts for people in certain situations, including those whose debts grew because of interest, borrowers with decades-old debts, and those who qualify for existing debt relief programs but haven’t applied, among others.If it survives court challenges, the program will bring the total number of people who have received some amount of student loan forgiveness to 30 million. About 4 million borrowers have already had their loans forgiven under other Biden programs, the department said.“While we appreciate the District Court’s acknowledgment that this case has no legal basis to be brought in Georgia, the fact remains that this lawsuit reflects an ongoing effort by Republican elected officials who want to prevent millions of their own constituents from getting breathing room on their student loans,” an Education Department spokesperson said via email. “ We will continue our lawful efforts to deliver relief to more Americans, including by vigorously defending these proposals in court.”

The fate of the program could ultimately be determined by the same Supreme Court that struck down Biden’s earlier attempt at forgiveness.

In that case, the court’s conservative majority ruled that Biden had overstepped his authority as president when discharging the loans, siding with Missouri and other Republican-led states that had sued to block forgiveness. The new program, however, uses a different bureaucratic procedure based on a different law—the Education Act of 1965—which the Department of Education says is constitutional. 

The loan forgiveness program is just one of Biden’s student loan-related programs currently tied up in court. Republican lawsuits have also blocked the SAVE repayment plan, a lower-cost loan repayment plan Biden rolled out last year, enrolling 8 million borrowers. Those borrowers’ loans are in interest-free forbearance until the legal battle is resolved.

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Investopedia

XRP Falls After SEC Appeals 2023 Ruling That Said The Token Was Not A Security

The price of the XRP token fell by as much as 11% Thursday following the Securities and Exchange Commission's (SEC) decision to appeal a federal court ruling last year that found XRP (XRPUSD) is not a security when algorithmically sold to retail investors via exchanges. XRP has since given up some of those losses and was trading roughly 3% lower at 52 cents in recent trading.

This ruling had been seen as a partial victory for XRP's developer, Ripple Labs, and the broader crypto industry, with U.S. District Judge Analisa Torres stating in the July 2023 order that the XRP token itself is not a security. However, the the court did view institutional XRP sales as unregistered securities offerings.

The SEC’s renewed push against Ripple continues after it initially sought $2 billion in damages in the case, although the court ordered Ripple to pay only a $125 million penalty.

"The SEC's decision to appeal is disappointing, but not surprising," Ripple Chief Legal Officer Stuart Alderoty posted late Wednesday on the social media platform X in response to the SEC's court filing.

This legal development came just hours after crypto asset manager Bitwise filed to offer for the first spot XRP ETF Wednesday. The SEC's appeal likely weakens the potential for the proposed spot XRP ETF to be approved anytime soon.

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Investopedia

What You Need To Know Ahead Of Delta's Earnings Next Thursday

Delta Air Lines (DAL) reports third-quarter results before the bell next Thursday, Oct. 10, its first report since July's worldwide IT outage caused by a CrowdStrike (CRWD) software update forced the carrier to cancel thousands of flights, costing it an estimated $500 million.

Analysts expect a slight year-over-year gain in revenue to $15.69 billion, with net income projected to tick lower to $1.10 billion, according to analysts' consensus estimates compiled by Visible Alpha.

All 10 analysts covering Delta tracked by Visible Alpha have a "buy" or equivalent rating on the airline's stock, with an average target price of $61.40, about 30% above Thursday afternoon's share price of $47.38.

In July, Delta posted record second-quarter revenue, but a number of costs rose at least 20%, leading profit to come in well below what analysts had expected, and shares fell 4% that day.

Revenue could continue its strong pace set in the first two quarters of the year, as airlines have said travel demand has remained strong, with July 4 travel setting TSA checkpoint records. However, Delta is also likely to have lost out on some revenue and incurred costs handling the mid-July IT outage.

Delta's Q2 results came about a week before the IT outage that hindered Delta's operations for several days. Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Ed Bastian estimated that the canceled flights and compensation for passengers cost the airline at least $500 million.

Delta was the hardest hit of the major airlines, and said it has considered legal action against CrowdStrike and Microsoft (MSFT), but the tech companies have said they aren't responsible for the age of Delta's IT infrastructure or how the airline responded to the outage.

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Investopedia

Hims & Hers Health Stock Falls As FDA Drops Eli Lilly Weight-Loss Drugs From Shortage List

Shares of Hims & Hers Health (HIMS) sank Thursday after the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said Eli Lilly’s (LLY) popular weight-loss treatments, Mounjaro and Zepbound, were no longer on its list of drugs in short supply.

The change could hurt Hims & Hers, which makes copycat weight-loss drugs, and has benefited from the limited availability of some obesity medicines.

The FDA allows companies to produce compounded drugs, which combine the key ingredient in the patented version with other drugs, when the originals are hard to obtain. However, the FDA's latest decision will prohibit other companies from making copycat versions of Eli Lilly's drugs.

Hims & Hers shares had also taken a hit in August after Eli Lilly said that it would be selling its two lowest doses of the medicine in vials that patients could measure themselves, saving money compared to pre-filled injectables. 

Shares of Hims & Hers were down 11.4% at $16.77 in Thursday afternoon trading, though despite Thursday’s decline, they've gained close to 90% since the start of the year.

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