NuScale Power (SMR) Stock Surges on UK Nuclear Funding but Analyst Flags Risks

TLDR

• NuScale Power (SMR) rose 14.7% intraday to ~$11.76, with another 5% gain in after-hours trading.
• The rally was driven by a UK government funding package to accelerate small modular reactor (SMR) deployment.
• RBC analyst Chris Dendrinos rates SMR a Sector Perform with a $14 price target, warning against chasing the rally.
• Active class-action litigation tied to ENTRA1 disclosure allegations remains an ongoing risk, with an April 20 lead-plaintiff deadline.
• Insiders sold over 14 million shares worth ~$171M in the last 90 days, including a director offloading 13.5 million shares.

NuScale Power stock surged 14.7% on Wednesday, trading as high as $12.02 before settling around $11.76. The move continued into after-hours, where the stock added another 5%. Volume was heavy — around 57.5 million shares changed hands, roughly 119% above average.

NuScale Power Corporation, SMR

The catalyst was a UK government funding package designed to speed up SMR deployment. The money is not going directly to NuScale, but it boosted sentiment across the entire nuclear sector. Investors read it as a signal that governments are getting more serious about backing next-generation nuclear projects.

The broader market also helped. Risk appetite has improved recently, and longer-duration growth stories like NuScale are getting a second look. The stock sits at the crossroads of energy security, decarbonisation, and AI data centre power demand — a combination that has been gaining traction with investors.

A Rolls-Royce SMR contract announcement added further fuel, lifting US-listed SMR names broadly. NuScale benefited from both the direct sentiment shift and likely some short-covering.

RBC Urges Caution

RBC analyst Chris Dendrinos isn’t ready to turn bullish just yet. He acknowledges NuScale is “headed in the right direction with incremental progress,” but says the road to a Final Investment Decision (FID) is “lengthy.” He kept his Sector Perform rating and trimmed his price target, while raising his discount rate assumptions to reflect execution risk.

Dendrinos points out that NuScale’s future depends heavily on factors outside its control — project approvals and third-party financing chief among them. Extended timelines raise the risk of equity dilution and make the stock harder to value with confidence. His $14 price target still implies roughly 20% upside from current levels, but he’s not recommending chasing it here.

The broader analyst consensus is mixed. The Street breakdown sits at 5 Buys, 6 Holds, and 1 Sell — a Moderate Buy overall — with an average price target of $17.39, implying around 48.5% upside if execution improves.

On the more bullish end, Bank of America upgraded the stock to Neutral with a $28 target in January. Texas Capital went further with a Strong Buy in late January. But UBS cut its target to $13, Canaccord slashed theirs from $60 to $25, and Citigroup sits at a Sell with an $11.50 target. The consensus target lands at $20.96.

Risks Remain Real

Fundamentals are still weak. NuScale posted EPS of -$0.80 last quarter, badly missing the -$0.10 consensus estimate. Revenue came in at $1.81 million against an $8.76 million expectation. Net margin sits at -1,130%.

Insider selling has been heavy. The CEO sold 82,667 shares in early March. A director offloaded 13.5 million shares worth around $163 million in April. Total insider disposals over 90 days: 14.1 million shares worth $171 million. Insiders now hold just 1.2% of the stock.

Class-action litigation is also active. Several law firms are pursuing claims tied to ENTRA1 disclosure allegations, with an April 20 lead-plaintiff deadline. The suits allege material misstatements linked to an earlier ~12% drop in the stock.

The 50-day moving average sits at $12.41. The 200-day is at $21.21.

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