SANTA CLARA, Calif., May 12, 2026, 15:02 (PDT)
Oklo posted a first-quarter net loss of $33.1 million, or 19 cents per share, blowing past last year’s $9.8 million, or 7 cents. The nuclear startup sharply ramped up spending on research, hiring, and project development—costs that helped drag shares down after their prior surge.
Timing is key here: investors have been positioning Oklo squarely as a play on surging AI data center energy demand, despite the fact the company hasn’t booked any reactor revenue yet. Options markets ahead of the report pointed to a potential 11% swing in the stock by week’s end. Even so, Oklo shares had rallied nearly 50% over the past month, but they’re still down about 60% from their October peak, according to Investopedia.
Oklo’s fortunes hinge less on current sales and more on its ability to get its reactor ambitions fully permitted and financed. On Tuesday, the company rolled out a Strategic Partnership Project with Battelle Energy Alliance—the group running Idaho National Laboratory—to integrate AI-driven workflows into reactor and fuel-system development. Just last week, Oklo reported that the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission had signed off on its Principal Design Criteria report, which lays out safety and licensing standards for the Aurora powerhouse planned for Idaho.
There was no revenue reported on the company’s latest statement of operations. Research and development costs jumped to $27.0 million, up from $7.8 million last year. General and administrative expenses also climbed, reaching $24.2 million compared with $10.0 million.
The balance sheet still does most of the heavy lifting. Oklo closed out March holding $1.59 billion in cash and cash equivalents, alongside $614.5 million parked in marketable debt securities set to mature within a year and $328.3 million in longer-dated marketable debt. Management tallied the sum of cash, cash equivalents, and all marketable debt securities at $2.54 billion.
Oklo shored up its balance sheet with a hefty share sale, unloading roughly 12.4 million shares via an at-the-market program and netting $1.18 billion. Shares outstanding jumped to 173.9 million by quarter’s end, up from 160.5 million at the year’s start, according to the filing.
Cash outflows are accelerating. Oklo burned through $17.9 million in operating cash last quarter and shelled out another $32.8 million for property, plant, and equipment. Management flagged that building its powerhouses, scaling up fuel recycling and fabrication, and growing the radioisotope business will require “significant” ongoing investment. SEC SEC
JPMorgan’s Jeremy Tonet kicked off coverage on Oklo this Monday, tagging the stock with a Neutral rating and pinning the price target at $83. In the note, the bank pointed to Oklo’s backlog and federal backing as factors that help it “stand out in a nascent industry.” Still, JPMorgan held back from a stronger endorsement, saying it’s waiting to see clear signs of successful commercialization before changing its stance. Investing.com Investopedia
Delays still top the risk list. Oklo’s filing flags a pile of uncertainties: building and rolling out its powerhouses, making and recycling fuel, rivals, regulatory hurdles, and whether it can secure high-assay low-enriched uranium — HALEU — or plutonium and other fuels, all at the right price and on schedule. Any setback on licensing or fuel could push out the timeline for first cash flow, making another capital raise more likely.
Sentiment soured further with pressure from peers. Shares of NuScale Power slid 9.9%. Constellation Energy, which owns a nuclear fleet, gave up 2.0%. Oklo finished the session at $73.63, dropping 5.7%, and was last seen at $71.72 in after-hours moves.
Oklo’s got cash on hand, a regulatory green light, and a new AI design tie-up. But there’s still zero revenue from active plants, and expenses are climbing quickly. That’s the equation investors are reworking right now.
