Political Risks Emerge for AI Specialty Stocks as $5 Billion Vanishes from U.S. Power Sector

Vistra Energy (Vistra Corp: VST) plunged 7.5% on the New York Stock Exchange on the 16th, closing at $166.60 and deepening its pullback. Its market capitalization fell to about $56.4 billion, erasing roughly $3.9 billion in a single day—equivalent to around ₩5 trillion. Trading volume topped 7.7 million shares, well above recent daily averages, reflecting concentrated selling pressure.

Shares tumbled after reports that the Trump administration proposed a 15-year power auction on the PJM grid requiring big-tech companies seeking data-center hookups to shoulder the cost of building new generation plants. When news emerged that lawmakers were also discussing bidding limits and additional regulations for the grid, utility stocks—including Vistra—suffered further losses, with Vistra’s shares falling nearly 9% intraday at one point.

Vistra is one of the largest U.S. privately held power generation and retail companies, with approximately 44 GW of assets spanning gas, nuclear, coal, solar, and battery storage. It has been regarded as a prime beneficiary of rising AI and data-center power demand. The company recently signed a 20-year nuclear power purchase agreement with Meta and is expanding its nuclear and gas fleet through 2026, targeting adjusted EBITDA of $6.8–7.6 billion for that year. As a result, investors now see the practical impact of these political developments as a key point of scrutiny.