Oklo (OKLO 12.53%) stock tumbled 13% through 3:40 p.m. ET Wednesday after investment bank Goldman Sachs cut its price target on the nuclear stock by 14%, to $91 per share -- and maintained only a neutral rating on the shares.
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What Goldman Sachs said about Oklo
That's somewhat strange. After all, with Oklo currently trading near $68 a share, a move to $91 would imply a 34% profit over the next 12 months. You'd think the potential for that kind of profit would have Goldman Sachs standing firmly in the "buy" camp on Oklo.
But it's not. Goldman is hedging its bets instead.
Why might that be? What little we know about the logic behind Goldman's shift on price target isn't much help. According to TheFly.com, "recent developments across North America, Europe, and Asia" show increasing global interest in nuclear power. As demand grows, though, Goldman's also seeing a "strong start-of-year rally in uranium spot prices."
This doesn't directly state bad news for Oklo, but it does at least hint at why Goldman might be getting less enthusiastic about the stock: If atomic fuel costs rise, nuclear power may become less economical, and demand for Oklo's small modular nuclear power plants could recede.
NYSE: OKLO
Key Data Points
Is Oklo stock a buy?
Now for the good (and also bad) news. Oklo's not even expected to begin generating revenue until sometime next year. Profits aren't likely to start before 2030 at the earliest. A lot can change between now and then -- the price of uranium included.
That said, if uranium prices are rising already today, long before any of Oklo's reactors are even operational, this could diminish enthusiasm for the company's product. Profits expected to come in 2030... might take even longer to arrive.
