Oklo or Centrus Energy: Truist Picks the Top Nuclear Stock to Buy

The world's energy economy is changing, for better or for worse. We are shifting away from fossil fuels and toward a model based on cleaner energy sources. While solar and wind power might get the headlines, nuclear energy almost certainly has a role in this changing energy scene.

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To start with, nuclear power is safe. We all know names like Three Mile Island, Chernobyl, and Fukushima – but we know them because they are the exception. Nuclear energy production has a long record of safe operation, with fewer major accidents than, for example, the oil industry.

In addition, nuclear power is extraordinarily energy dense, while advances in reactor technology continue to expand its potential applications.

In addition, nuclear power is one of the most energy-dense power sources available, and advances in reactor technology are making it more versatile. Small modular reactors (SMRs), for example, promise utility-scale, off-grid power for a wide range of uses, from data centers to grid backup. Large traditional reactors can provide power at grid scale and keep running when the wind dies down or the sun sets. Reliability, scalability, and round-the-clock generation will keep nuclear power a serious option in any rational energy expansion plan.

Analyst Christopher Souther, who covers energy stocks for Truist, shares that view while pointing to several additional factors supporting the long-term investment case for nuclear power.

"Nuclear energy could emerge as the critical long-term solution to the firm power gap in the 2030s – meeting data center demand for reliable baseload power, backfilling retirements of aging coal and gas capacity, and providing a more reliable pathway for builders of data centers to fulfill clean energy goals… This opportunity will depend on the successful commercialization and cost competitiveness of next-generation nuclear designs," Souther opined.

So, which stock offers the better opportunity today: reactor developer Oklo (NYSE:OKLO) or nuclear fuel specialist Centrus Energy (NYSE:LEU)? Souther covers both, but he believes one has the edge. Let's take a closer look.

Oklo, Inc. (OKLO)

Up first is Oklo, a nuclear power company based in Santa Clara, California. Oklo's focus is on the development of new fission technology for advanced nuclear power reactors, and on finding new solutions for the oldest problem with nuclear power, the disposal or recycling of spent nuclear fuels. Oklo is building the ways and means to use the latest, most efficient nuclear technologies in the deployment of new power plants. The goal is to provide clean and reliable electric power that is both affordable and scalable.

Oklo is involved in both the Reactor Pilot Program (RPP) and the Fuel Line Pilot Program (FLPP), both with the US Department of Energy (DOE). These programs aim to speed up the development and testing of advanced reactor designs and fuels – in other words, the very aims that Oklo has built its business around.

The company's chief focus, for now, is the design and build-out of fast reactors, making use of liquid metal cooling and metal fuels, and is working to build in the ability to use nuclear waste as fuel. This last point is important, as current nuclear technology only makes use of some 5% of the fuel's total potential energy, and the disposal of nuclear fuel waste has always been a highly controversial aspect of the industry. By recycling spent fuel waste into usable fuel, Oklo directly addresses a serious efficiency issue in the nuclear power industry, and defuses the waste disposal issue.

In the past several weeks, Oklo has cleared some important milestones in its development work. In June, the company announced that it had received the DOE's Preliminary Documented Safety Analysis for its Aurora powerhouse project at Idaho National Laboratory under the Reactor Pilot Program. This regulatory approval allows the project to advance to the next stage of the DOE authorization process.

Also in June, Oklo announced an agreement – a memorandum of understanding – with Standard Nuclear to collaborate on both nuclear fuel recycling and advanced fuel manufacturing. The two companies will work together to develop cost-effective methods to safely and securely use U.S. surplus plutonium in the production of advanced reactor fuel.

And, in another important fuel-related measure, Oklo has signed a letter of intent with Centrus Energy. The letter covers the provision of fuel for several of Oklo's Aurora powerhouse projects, over multiple years. Under the letter of intent, Centrus will provide Oklo with high-assay low-enriched uranium, or HALEU, for multiple years, beginning in 2029.

All of this bodes well for Oklo's ability to maintain operations into the near future, a key point for investors to consider as this company is currently pre-revenue and typically runs at a net loss. In its last reported quarter, 1Q26, Oklo's net loss came to $33.1 million, significantly deeper than the $9.8 million net loss reported in 1Q25.

We should note here that Oklo's stock has been falling this year, and is down 36% year-to-date. Investors have been worried about the company's pre-revenue status, the long projected timeline to bring its Aurora powerhouses online, and the heavy cash burn in recent months.

These factors, and the company's high valuation, were on Chris Souther's mind when the Truist analyst wrote up his coverage of OKLO stock.

"We view the company as a potential long-term beneficiary of accelerating power demand and increasing interest in advanced nuclear technologies. However, with commercialization still in its early stages, we believe greater visibility into first-of-a-kind (FOAK) plant economics and execution is needed before the risk-reward becomes more compelling," Souther noted.

To this end, Souther rates OKLO stock as a Hold (i.e., Neutral), with a price target of $55 that suggests a one-year upside potential of 20%.

Overall, Oklo has a Moderate Buy rating from the Street's analyst consensus, based on 17 recent recommendations that split 9 to 8 between Buys and Holds. The stock is priced at $45.69, and its $90.23 average price target is much higher than the Truist view, indicating room for a gain of 97% in the coming months. (See OKLO stock forecast)