AES: S&P 500’s Top Gainer on January 18

The S&P 500’s top gainers on January 18 were:

• AES (AES) rose 7.6%.
• Viacom Inc Cl B (VIAB) rose 6.2%.
• Wyndham Worldwide (WYN) rose 4.8%.
• M&T Bank (MTB) rose 3.9%.
• Discovery Comm A (DISCA) rose 3.6%.

AES, which is a leading power generator and distributor, was the S&P 500’s top gainer on January 18. After consolidating for more than two months, AES started this week on a weaker note and regained strength as the week progressed.

On Thursday, AES opened the day higher amid improved sentiment and closed the day at six-month high price levels. The buying pressure in AES increased on Thursday after a board seat was allocated to Jeffrey Ubben—an activist investor and founder of ValueAct Capital. It boosted the sentiment. ValueAct and Ubben have been pressuring AES’s management to sell high-risk coal assets and reinvest in renewable energy projects. AES could generate cash flows in the long term, which could help improve the returns.

On January 18, AES gained 7.6% and closed the day at $11.53—the highest daily close since June 26, 2017. AES is part of the S&P 500 Utilities sector, which fell 0.62% on Thursday.

In the next part of this series, we’ll discuss how Viacom and Wyndham Worldwide performed on January 18.