This Nuclear Stock Could Make Patient Investors Rich

For investors who can stay invested in stocks for five to 10 years, nuclear energy stocks could present an enormous opportunity right now.

The reason goes beyond AI data centers. Although data centers are causing a massive scramble for power unlike any before, the clean energy nuclear reactors produce is also sought by other industries. High-energy factories, such as those that produce steel, cement, and chemicals, and remote industrial sites could all benefit from the around-the-clock power that nuclear reactors provide. Ditto for harbors, off-grid communities, and military bases.

Oklo (NYSE: OKLO) sits at the heart of this emerging nuclear market. The stock has tanked almost 50% in 2026, yet Oklo's opportunity hasn't changed. Could this still be the nuclear stock that makes investors rich? Let's take a look.

Oklo could triple from today's price if it deploys 14 gigawatts (GW)

Oklo is emerging from its former speculative cocoon into a company that really has a shot at selling power from nuclear reactors.

In a nutshell, Oklo wants to make money in three ways. It wants to sell power generated from its small reactors, which it calls Aurora powerhouses. These would be recurring power sales from power purchase agreements (PPAs), not unlike how electric utilities make money today. Additionally, it aims to generate revenue from fuel and radioisotope sales.

Image source: Oklo.

These three could combine to form a powerful revenue stream for Oklo, but deploying reactors will always be its biggest opportunity. Just take its current 14-gigawatt (GW) pipeline. If Oklo ultimately deployed that much and each reactor operated at 90% capacity, they would generate about 110 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity per year. At $0.09 per kilowatt-hour -- roughly the average price U.S. industrial customers pay for electricity right now -- Oklo could generate almost $10 billion in annual revenue from this capacity alone.

If we start with $10 billion in annual revenue and factor in expected dilution, a three-times price-to-sales ratio -- roughly the average for electric utilities -- would put Oklo stock at roughly $130 per share -- about 225% above where it trades today.

It would, of course, take years to build that much capacity. But investors who have the patience to wait for Oklo to build out that fleet -- and perhaps grow it beyond 14 GW -- could one day be holding shares worth several times what they are today.

Could Oklo make patient investors rich?

As more companies warm up to nuclear power, sales of these reactors could explode. Although communities may resist nuclear projects for safety reasons, the need for clean, reliable electricity from decarbonized sources could make reactors increasingly difficult to turn down.

That demand, in turn, would make Oklo a very profitable power company.

Still, there are many unknowns about nuclear energy, and I won't pretend its adoption won't come without friction, setbacks, and failures. Therefore, Oklo is not a stock to buy if uncertainty makes you very uncomfortable.

This uncertainty is compounded by the fact that the stock carries a $7.5 billion market cap; if Oklo became a $100 billion company, growing 13-fold, you would need to invest $75,000 today to turn it into $1 million. That's quite a lot to invest in a company with almost no revenue today.

That said, Oklo stock could generate market-beating returns over the next decade, even if explosive 100-bagger growth isn't likely. This might be a good nuclear stock to add to an already diversified portfolio, one of several that have long-term growth potential.

Steven Porrello has positions in Oklo. The Motley Fool has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.