Peter Thiel’s hedge fund, Thiel Macro LLC, acquired a roughly 1% stake in Argentine shale oil producer Vista Energy, according to a U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission filing published Friday, according to CNBC. Vista Energy stock climbed 5.4% in premarket trading on Monday after the filing became public.
According to the filing, Thiel Macro’s position consisted of roughly 1.2 million Vista Energy American Depositary Shares, with a reported value of approximately $76 million at the close of the second quarter on June 30. The position was the fund’s second-largest disclosed holding, trailing only its Amazon stake of around 495,000 shares worth roughly $118 million.
Vista Energy is Argentina’s largest independent energy company, operating in the Vaca Muerta shale formation in the Neuquén province of Patagonia, according to Reuters. The formation holds the world’s second-largest shale gas and fourth-largest oil reserves. The company’s current output stands at 160,000 barrels of oil equivalent daily, and it has deployed over $6.5 billion in capital across Argentina.
The SEC filing showed Thiel Macro rebuilt its total disclosed U.S. equity portfolio to more than $400 million in the second quarter, after reporting zero holdings for two consecutive quarters, according to The Globe and Mail. Energy and utility companies account for six of the seven new positions Thiel Macro initiated, spanning names such as American Electric Power, DTE Energy, FirstEnergy, CMS Energy, X-Energy, and Vista Energy. Thiel Macro also re-entered Vistra, building its holding up to 372,755 shares, a position valued at $59.1 million by quarter-end, according to The Globe and Mail.
Peter Thiel relocated to Buenos Aires with his family earlier this year and purchased a mansion there, according to Reuters. In April, he met with Argentine President Javier Milei at the presidential palace, where they discussed economic policies. His time in Argentina has also included meetings with several senior government figures, among them Economy Minister Luis Caputo, Deregulation Minister Federico Sturzenegger, and presidential adviser Santiago Caputo. Milei’s administration has championed broad economic overhauls designed to draw outside capital into Argentina’s resource sectors, from oil and lithium to rare earth minerals.
