Oklo stock soared Wednesday after the nuclear-power startup reported a better-than-expected first-quarter loss and reiterated full-year guidance.
The Santa Clara, Calif.-based nuclear power company announced late Tuesday a Q1 loss of 7 cents per share, down from a $4.79 per share loss a year ago. That was also less than the expected 10 cent per share loss, according to FactSet.
Oklo also maintained that it remains on track to deliver its guided range of $65 million to $80 million for total cash used in operations for full year 2025. Executives added Tuesday that its first commercial small modular reactor, or SMR, should come online in late 2027 or early 2028. Oklo has previously said it doesn't expect its first Aurora SMR powerhouse to be operational until 2027.
"We continue to see strong momentum across both the industry and the political landscape in support of nuclear energy and that momentum is accelerating in 2025," Chief Executive Jacob DeWitte told analysts on Tuesday's conference call.
"The current administration has made it abundantly clear that nuclear is a strategic priority," DeWitte added.
Oklo stock finished Thursday's stock market action up 1.2% to 37.46. This comes after Oklo jumped more than 15% to 37.01, running as high as 39.37, on Wednesday.
The stock is now up around 56% in May. For the 2025 stock market, Oklo stock is up more than 74% after entering this month's market action trading basically flat on the year.
However, OKLO has declined 37% since it hit an all-time high of 59.14 on Feb. 7. The stock jumped 101% in 2024. But the gain masked some wild gyrations.
Wedbush analyst Dan Ives maintained an outperform rating on Oklo with a 45 price target on Wednesday. Ives wrote that Oklo "continues to differentiate itself from competition with its attractive build, own, and operate business model which in turn provide long-term recurring revenues and a streamlined regulatory pathway."
Earnings Come After Altman Leaves
In late April, OpenAI Chief Executive Sam Altman stepped down from his role as chairman of the nuclear-power startup. Altman had served Oklo chairman since 2015.
"Sam has been instrumental in shaping Oklo's trajectory since the inception of Oklo," DeWitte said at the time.
Altman in a statement said that nuclear energy is essential to meet the "growing energy demands of artificial intelligence and other critical industries" and that Oklo's current leadership team is "well suited to meet these needs."
"As Oklo explores strategic partnerships to deploy clean energy at scale, particularly to enable the deployment of AI, I believe now is the right time for me to step down. Historically, energy availability and cost, along with computational limitations, have been fundamental constraints on technological progress. A future where these are no longer limiting factors will be radically different, and I look forward to following Oklo's leadership in driving this transformation," Altman said.
Following Q1 earnings, B. Riley wrote that with Altman stepping down, this move could accelerate Oklo's ability to work with OpenAI by avoiding a conflict of interest in discussions between the companies. The firm added that it sees a potential OpenAI deal as a meaningful positive catalyst for the stock. The firm has a Buy rating and 58 price target on Oklo shares.
Oklo And Nuclear Stocks
Oklo has been busy cutting deals and signing letters of intent to partner with data centers to provide nuclear energy in the coming years. The deals revolve around a new breed of nuclear power plants called SMRs. No operating SMRs currently exist, but a number of companies are developing the technology. The company reported Tuesday that its customer pipeline totals over 14 gigawatts and spans sectors including data centers and defense.
SMRs aim to provide power at the user site level, drastically reducing the time and cost of permitting, constructing and operating full-scale nuclear facilities.
Meanwhile, President Donald Trump announced earlier this year that Altman's OpenAI, along with SoftBank and Oracle, are planning a joint venture called Stargate. The plan is to build data centers and other AI infrastructure in the U.S., with investments of up to $500 billion. Nuclear stocks responded positively to the news.
However, in January when China-based DeepSeek released its powerful artificial intelligence program that it claimed cost just $5.6 million to build, it marked a possible paradigm shift. The DeepSeek AI model suggested that massive levels of investment by technology industry giants in energy and AI infrastructure might not be necessary.
Nuke Stocks Cool Off After Hot 2024
S&P 500 nuclear stocks Constellation Energy and Vistra ran toward the top of the index in 2024 as investors flocked to artificial intelligence-adjacent plays. However, 2025 has been a different story, as uncertainty cuts through the market's optimism on AI.
Last week, Constellation Energy underperformed first-quarter profit expectations but kept its 2025 guidance steady, bucking the stock market trend which has seen many companies suspend or reduce annual outlooks amid economic uncertainty.
S&P 500 Nuke Stock Soars As It Holds Outlook Steady, An AI-Trend Vote Of Confidence
Vistra reported a surprise first-quarter loss of $268 million with revenue increasing 29% to $3.93 billion. Similar to Constellation, it also kept its 2025 guidance steady, reaffirming its expectation of adjusted profit coming in between $5.5 billion and $6.1 billion.
CEG is up around 30% this year, but is down about 18% from its all-time high of 352 on Jan. 23. The S&P 500 stock bottomed at 161.35 on April 7, but has now moved around 80% higher since then, regaining its 200-day and 50-day moving averages.
Meanwhile, among other SMR-focused companies Nano Nuclear Energy galloped 380% higher in 2024 since going public on the Nasdaq on May 8. And NuScale Power surged 445% in 2024, propelled higher by more than 50% gains in October and November.
SMR stock is up about 27% in 2025 and NNE has gained 6% so far this year in stock market trade.
Oklo stock has an 83 Composite Rating out of a best-possible 99. Shares also have a 99 Relative Strength Rating and a485 EPS Rating.
Please follow Kit Norton on X @KitNorton for more coverage.
YOU MAY ALSO LIKE:
Get Full Access To IBD Stock Lists And Ratings
Learning How To Pick Great Stocks? Read Investor's Corner
AI Is Fueling A 'Nuclear Renaissance.' Bill Gates And Jeff Bezos Are In The Mix.
The Lithium Price Cycle Has Bottomed. What To Expect Next For These Stocks.
S&P 500 Erases 2025 Losses As Nvidia Lifts AI, Flashes Buy Signal
