Analyst and former banker Felix Prehn published a thread on August 24 arguing that most retail investors missed the 500% to 1,000% gains already seen in Palantir, Intel, and Seagate.
He now points to four companies sitting at what he calls the true bottleneck of artificial intelligence: electricity.
This article is not financial advice. Stock prices are volatile, past performance does not guarantee future results, and readers should conduct their own research or consult a licensed advisor before making any investment decision.
Why Power Companies Became the New AI Trade
Prehn's thesis centers on a structural shortage rather than a speculative narrative. Big Tech companies are signing long-term contracts to secure nuclear and other generation capacity, even as hundreds of billions of dollars pour into chips and data center construction.
If you missed Palantir at , Intel at or Seagate at , you're not alone.
— Felix Prehn 🐶 (@felixprehn) August 24, 2026
Each stock ran 500-1000% in the next 12 months, and most retail investors missed it.
I went hunting for the next stocks that could go on a similar run as these, and came across these 4:🧵
Without reliable, clean power, he argues, spending cannot fully materialize into operating capacity. The four companies below sit directly in the path of that demand, each tied to concrete contracts with major AI infrastructure buyers rather than speculative exposure to the sector.
Constellation Energy (CEG)
Constellation owns the largest nuclear fleet in the United States, including Three Mile Island, which was restarted under the name Crane Clean Energy Center. In the second quarter of 2026, the company signed 920 megawatts of new long-term nuclear power purchase agreements, averaging 18.5 years in duration, including a deal with Walmart.
Management raised its adjusted operating earnings guidance to $11.50 to $12.50 per share, with the CEO describing existing plants as the bedrock for powering data centers during this early phase. Shares trade near $273, down roughly 34% from a 52-week high of $412.70, according to TradingView data.
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Constellation Energy (CEG) Price Performance. Source: TradingView Talen Energy (TLN)
Talen owns the Susquehanna nuclear plant and holds a major long-term contract with Amazon Web Services covering up to 1,920 megawatts. In its second-quarter results, the company raised adjusted EBITDA guidance to $2.025 billion to $2.225 billion and free cash flow guidance to $1.2 billion to $1.35 billion.
Talen also closed its Cornerstone acquisition and advanced a pipeline of roughly 4 gigawatts in data center options. Shares trade at $305, correcting from an all-time high near $451 reached in October 2025.
Talen Energy (TLN) Price Performance. Source: TradingView Vistra (VST)
Vistra holds long-term contracts with Meta and Amazon and recently launched Helix Digital Infrastructure alongside NVIDIA, KKR, and the Kuwait Investment Authority, with an initial commitment of up to $1 billion. In the second quarter, the company posted more than 30% growth in ongoing operations adjusted EBITDA and reaffirmed its full-year 2026 guidance.
It also received FERC approval for its acquisition of Cogentrix. Shares trade near $135, well off a 52-week high of $219.82.
Vistra (VST) Price Performance. Source: TradingView GE Vernova (GEV)
GE Vernova sells gas turbines, generation equipment, and grid infrastructure, with a backlog that reached $176 billion. AI data center orders more than doubled during the first half of 2026 compared to all of 2025, while its gas turbine backlog hit 116 gigawatts, with management expecting to surpass 125 gigawatts by year-end.
The company recently launched a new MV-UPS system built specifically for AI factories and signed battery storage contracts in Australia. Shares trade around $942, near an all-time high of roughly $1,196 reached in July 2026.
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GE Vernova (GEV) Price Performance. Source: TradingView What Investors Should Weigh Before Following This Thesis
All four companies share the same underlying catalyst: growing, contracted demand for the clean, reliable power that AI infrastructure requires. That structural setup differentiates them from purely speculative AI plays tied to chip demand or software hype alone.
Prehn himself flagged the key risk directly. If AI spending slows, or if the profits these buildouts assume fail to materialize on schedule, share prices across this group could fall sharply, given how much of their recent value already reflects future expectations.
He recommended having a clear exit strategy in place before entering any of these positions. As with any concentrated thematic bet, diversification and position sizing matter as much as the underlying thesis itself.
None of the information above constitutes financial advice. Readers should independently verify current prices, company fundamentals, and risk factors, and consider consulting a licensed financial advisor before making investment decisions based on this analysis.
Read the Original story Former Banker Says the Real AI Trade Isn't Chips, It's Electricity: 4 Stocks to Watch by Luis Blanco at beincrypto.com