Stock Traders Buy High Volume of NuScale Power Call Options (NYSE:SMR)

NuScale Power Corporation (NYSE:SMR) saw some unusual options trading activity on Friday. Stock traders bought 146,774 call options on the company. This is an increase of approximately 31% compared to the typical daily volume of 111,873 call options.

NuScale Power Stock Up 4.5%

SMR traded up $0.89 during trading on Friday, reaching $20.56. 42,437,294 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 41,867,305. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $21.24 and its 200 day moving average is $33.52. NuScale Power has a 12 month low of $11.08 and a 12 month high of $57.42. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.14 billion, a PE ratio of -7.19 and a beta of 2.12.

NuScale Power (NYSE:SMR) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 6th. The company reported ($1.85) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.11) by ($1.74). NuScale Power had a negative net margin of 594.63% and a negative return on equity of 51.27%. The company had revenue of $8.24 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.29 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted ($0.18) EPS. NuScale Power’s revenue for the quarter was up 1635.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that NuScale Power will post -0.73 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Robert Ramsey Hamady sold 40,000 shares of NuScale Power stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $22.17, for a total transaction of $886,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 46,283 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,026,094.11. This trade represents a 46.36% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 1.20% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On NuScale Power

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Brave Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of NuScale Power during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $142,000. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its position in NuScale Power by 4.7% during the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 27,998 shares of the company’s stock valued at $397,000 after purchasing an additional 1,256 shares in the last quarter. Aventura Private Wealth LLC purchased a new position in NuScale Power in the fourth quarter valued at about $141,000. Triumph Capital Management purchased a new position in NuScale Power in the third quarter valued at about $37,000. Finally, Allworth Financial LP boosted its holdings in shares of NuScale Power by 7.8% in the 3rd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 10,492 shares of the company’s stock valued at $378,000 after buying an additional 758 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 78.37% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

SMR has been the topic of several analyst reports. BNP Paribas lowered NuScale Power from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 21st. Wall Street Zen downgraded NuScale Power from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, November 8th. BNP Paribas Exane cut shares of NuScale Power from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 21st. Cantor Fitzgerald began coverage on shares of NuScale Power in a report on Tuesday, October 21st. They set an “overweight” rating and a $55.00 target price for the company. Finally, Zacks Research raised NuScale Power from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, December 22nd. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $34.75.

NuScale Power Company Profile

NuScale Power Corporation, trading on the NYSE American under the ticker SMR, is a pioneering developer of small modular nuclear reactors. Established in 2007 as a spinout from Oregon State University, the company is headquartered in Portland, Oregon. NuScale’s mission is to deliver zero-carbon baseload power through scalable modular reactor technology, aiming to transform traditional nuclear energy deployment.

At the core of NuScale’s offering is the VOYGR small modular reactor design, featuring 77-megawatt electric (MWe) modules with passive safety systems.