Oklo Stock Slides As Short Seller Sets Sights On Altman-Backed Nuclear Startup (UPDATED)

Editor’s note: This story has been updated to note that Oklo declined to comment on Kerrisdale Capital’s short report.

Oklo Inc OKLO shares are trading lower Wednesday after Kerrisdale Capital released a short report claiming the nuclear company is overvalued.

What Happened: Short selling firm Kerrisdale announced a short position in Sam Altman-backed nuclear startup Oklo Wednesday morning.

“Virtually every aspect of Oklo's investment case warrants skepticism,” the short seller said.

Oklo declined to comment on the short report.

Oklo went public in May through a SPAC merger with Altman's AltC Acquisition Corp. Oklo shares are up about 185% over the last three months, driven by increased optimism around nuclear after multiple big tech companies signed deals with nuclear power startups to help keep up with rising energy demands of data centers.

Kerrisdale said the recent momentum in Oklo shares is retail-driven, given that Oklo is a “story stock” with no expected revenue for multiple years. The short seller noted that Oklo has plans to submit a license application to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) in 2025 and has said it’s targeting its first nuclear deployment by late 2027.

Kerrisdale said it spoke with a former NRC commissioner who believes Oklo’s timeline is “beyond optimistic.” The short seller said the former NRC commissioner said it would “probably take at least four years” to obtain a license.

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Kerrisdale also said a former Oklo employee told the short seller the company’s senior management team is “very inexperienced.” The short seller alleged that Oklo is using “outlandish” fuel cost assumptions in its forecasts and has “lowballed” its projections by a factor of five.

The short seller further highlighted commentary from an “industry participant” who allegedly said if Oklo used “real numbers” in its forecasts, “this program would be over.”

“Many of the expert views shared in this report were pointed and critical of Oklo precisely because SMRs may play a role in meeting our energy goals, but promoting unrealistic timelines and benefits only does a disservice to the industry's cause,” the short seller said.

OKLO Price Action: Oklo shares were down 3.35% at $21.07 at the time of publication Wednesday, according to Benzinga Pro.

Photo: courtesy of Oklo.