NuScale Power Gains Wall Street Backing as Analysts Target 24% Upside on Nuclear Pipeline

NuScale Power Corp. (NYSE: SMR) has endured a challenging period in public markets, with its share price dropping nearly 40% since 2026. Despite the substantial retreat in market value, Wall Street research continues to project significant recovery potential for the small modular reactor (SMR) technology provider. In early August, Bank of America analyst Rinny Singh reiterated a buy rating on NuScale stock while maintaining a $12 price target, indicating an estimated upside of roughly 24% over the coming 12 months.

The central thesis underpinning Singh's constructive outlook focuses on NuScale’s ability to transition its extensive customer pipeline into firm, revenue-generating commercial ventures. The primary driver within this pipeline is a proposed 6-gigawatt (GW) power project being developed alongside financing partner ENTRA1 and utility provider Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA). Market participants view the progress of this single large-scale initiative as a crucial indicator for NuScale's broader commercial adoption curve.

NuScale currently occupies a distinct regulatory position within the domestic advanced energy sector, remaining the sole technology developer in the United States to have secured official regulatory approval to build a small modular reactor. Should the multi-gigawatt development with the Tennessee Valley Authority move forward to full construction, the resulting 6-GW installation would become the largest operating SMR facility in the world by a wide margin, cementing NuScale's status as a pioneer in utility-scale modular nuclear power.

Despite its potential, the transaction with the Tennessee Valley Authority remains non-binding, as the utility has yet to extend firm financial commitments to the venture. To convert the preliminary framework into a binding project, the involved parties must negotiate and sign a formal power-purchase agreement (PPA) that obligates the utility to acquire electricity generated by the future nuclear plant. In a note delivered to clients earlier this year, Singh pointed out that NuScale's rate of converting prospective agreements into finalized deals was proceeding slower than expected, while also highlighting risks associated with elevated cash burn rates and near-term capital requirements.

However, NuScale has substantially fortified its balance sheet in recent months to better position itself during the ongoing contract negotiations. According to its most recent quarterly financial disclosures, the firm expanded its liquidity reserves to roughly $1.9 billion in cash and cash equivalents. This improved capital position effectively resolved the immediate funding vulnerabilities previously cited by analysts, though the financial stabilization came at the cost of equity dilution for existing shareholders.

With balance sheet risks largely mitigated, corporate executives are directing operational focus toward converting the tentative TVA arrangement into a firm contract, with management projecting a PPA could be in place by the end of 2026. In the company's previous quarterly conference call, NuScale's chief executive officer specifically cited ongoing advancements in power purchase agreement discussions involving ENTRA1 and TVA. Furthermore, NuScale's chief financial officer stated that management remains hopeful that TVA will finalize the contract terms later in the current year.

A finalized PPA would provide major commercial validation for NuScale's core technology and go-to-market strategy, while simultaneously clearing lingering market doubts regarding project financing. Its financing partner, ENTRA1, obtained approval last year for $25 billion in government funding allocated toward large-scale energy projects. Although not all of those federal funds are earmarked for NuScale installations, formalizing the TVA agreement would likely lead investors to assign greater baseline valuation to the company’s broader project pipeline.

Singh's positive outlook reflects a broader institutional sentiment across the financial sector, where the Wall Street consensus price target for NuScale equity also stands at approximately $12 per share, as first reported by Yahoo Finance. Nevertheless, institutional investors and market researchers maintain that the long-term investment thesis for the nuclear firm will heavily depend on management's ability to cross the finish line and secure a signed PPA for the 6-gigawatt TVA project.