Is OKLO's $1.5B ATM Program Fueling a Major Nuclear Buildout?

Oklo Inc. (OKLO), a pre-revenue advanced fission developer, continues to scale toward commercial operations with sizable capital requirements. To meet this need, the company recently launched a massive $1.5 billion at-the-market (ATM) stock program. This program significantly expands the ways OKLO can raise cash, just as its reactor, fuel, and radioisotope projects are gaining speed.

The plan, secured last week, involves selling shares gradually on the NYSE through major financial institutions like Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, and others, paying commissions of up to 1.5%. This flexible structure allows OKLO to raise cash exactly when its projects need it, complementing the substantial $1.184 billion it already holds in cash and investments.

This new funding directly supports the company’s operating expenses, its core reactor development, and the construction of its vital fuel-recycling facilities, including the Tennessee fuel center and pilot facilities selected by the Department of Energy (DOE). OKLO has recently achieved several important goals that make the use of this capital much safer, including groundbreaking at the Aurora-INL site, purchasing major reactor components, detailed DOE approval planning, and winning three DOE Reactor Pilot Program projects. These developments help reduce the risk of its first deployments and speed up future timelines.

However, investors must carefully consider the risk of dilution. Because OKLO is issuing a large number of new shares through this program, its financial filings clearly point out that this could reduce the immediate and future value of existing shares. The company posted an operating loss of $36.3 million in Q3, mainly due to payroll and business expenses, and its cash use shows that it is actively deploying the funds. As shareholders weigh this trade-off, the expanded ability to raise $1.5 billion positions OKLO to fund reactor commercialization, fuel recycling and radioisotope production with much greater financial stability — a crucial advantage for a nuclear newcomer navigating a market with huge potential.

Equity Issuance Remains the Lifeline for Nuclear Players

NuScale Power (SMR) continues to depend heavily on equity issuance to fund its operations and ongoing development work. NuScale Power frequently uses at-the-market offerings and public stock sales to secure capital, a reflection of the significant costs and lengthy timelines tied to small-modular-reactor manufacturing. This steady reliance shows how NuScale Power remains dependent on external funding as it pushes its early-stage reactors toward commercialization.

NANO Nuclear Energy (NNE) also leans strongly on new share issuance to advance its capital-intensive nuclear initiatives. In the nine months ended June 30, 2025, NANO Nuclear Energy raised more than $206 million through common stock sales, supported by multiple follow-on offerings and private placements. These sizable raises highlight how NANO Nuclear Energy must continually access equity markets to cover the substantial research, development, and manufacturing expenses tied to emerging nuclear technologies.

The Zacks Rundown on OKLO

Shares of Oklo have surged nearly 400% so far this year, breezing past the industry's growth.

OKLO currently has an average brokerage recommendation (ABR) of 2.05 on a scale of 1 to 5 (Strong Buy to Strong Sell), calculated based on the actual recommendations (Buy, Hold, Sell, etc.) made by 19 brokerage firms.

See how the Zacks Consensus Estimate for OKLO’s earnings has been revised over the past 30 days.

The stock currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).

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