Nuclear technology stock Oklo Inc (NYSE:OKLO) is on the rise today, up 3.6% at $139.38 at last glance, after Canaccord Genuity initiated coverage with a "buy" rating and price target of $175. The firm sees the company as a potential leader in a "new nuclear age" as small module reactor nuclear assets grow in volume and as part of the global energy mix.
The AI power boom has helped push Oklo stock up 555% year-to-date, with a monthly gain of 55% in September alone. The shares are now heading back toward their Oct. 6 record high of $147.12, forming a bullish flag pattern on the charts.
A short squeeze could help OKLO reach that peak again; short interest is up 5% in the most recent reporting period, and now represents a large 14.7% of the stock's available float despite the recent peak.
Puts have been much more popular than usual over the last 10 weeks, per OKLO's 50-day put/call volume ratio of 1.54 at the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Cboe Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX), which ranks higher than 96% of readings from the past year. Echoing this, the equity's Schaeffer's put/call open interest ratio (SOIR) of 1.13 stands in the 90th percentile of annual readings. A further unwinding of pessimism could keep tailwinds at OKLO's back.
Now looks like a great time to weigh in with options. The stock's Schaeffer's Volatility Index (SVI) sits in the bottom percentile of annual readings, suggesting options traders are pricing in low volatility expectations. Oklo also tends to outperform options traders' volatility expectations, per its Schaeffer's Volatility Scorecard (SVS) of 85 out of 100.
