Ken Griffin Boosts Stake in Affymetrix, Inc. (AFFX); Cuts Penn Virginia Corporation (PVA)

In two new moves filed today with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Ken Griffin and his fund Citadel Investment reported boosting its stake in Vitamin Shoppe Inc (NYSE:VSI) and Affymetrix, Inc. (NASDAQ:AFFX). At the same time, in a third filing, Citadel revealed cutting its position in Penn Virginia Corporation (NYSE:PVA).

In Vitamin Shoppe Inc (NYSE:VSI), Citadel revealed ownership of 1.52 million shares, the stake representing 5.0% of the common stock. Earlier, in its latest 13F the fund disclosed holding just around 202,000 shares of the company.

In November, Steven Cohen‘s Sac Capital also surged significantly its position in Vitamin Shoppe Inc (NYSE:VSI), currently owning 1.53 million shares. The stock of Vitamin Shoppe declined by over 20% during the past year, while the average target price is set at $53 per share, well above the current stock price of the company.

In the second filing, Citadel reported raising the stake in Affymetrix, Inc. (NASDAQ:AFFX) to a total of 6.2% of the common stock, the stake amassing 4.75 million shares, well above the previous amount of 38,400 shares held by the fund aside from the shares held under the “Call” and “Put” options. Aside from that, in its latest 13F, Citadel disclosed holding 8.77 million shares in the form of Bonds.

The fund also cut its stake in Penn Virginia Corporation (NYSE:PVA), currently holding 2.96 million shares, versus 4.83 million disclosed earlier. Another notorious investor that is has been bullish on the same stock is George Soros, who in September boosted its position 6.2 million shares, from 1.9 million shares.

Penn Virginia Corporation (NYSE:PVA) is an independent oil and gas company. Its stock surged by over 150% during the past year, trailing a forward P/E of around 57. The mean target price for Penn Virginia Corporation (NYSE:PVA)’s stock is at around $13.9, which is higher than the current price at which the stock trades.

Disclosure: none

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