Big Institutional Money Spots Opportunity in NuScale Power Amid Market Selloff

2025-12-23 15:37:02

The Move

Virtu Financial, a major institutional investor managing $1.79 billion in U.S. equities, made a notable entry into the nuclear energy space by purchasing 579,353 shares of NuScale Power (NYSE: SMR) valued at approximately $20.86 million during the third quarter of 2025. This represents the firm’s inaugural position in the small modular reactor (SMR) developer, signaling confidence in the sector despite recent headwinds.

Why This Matters

The timing is significant. NuScale Power shares had dropped roughly 9% over the preceding year as of mid-November 2025, falling to $22.45 per share. The stock underperformed the broader S&P 500 by more than 22 percentage points during this period, creating what some institutional players viewed as an attractive entry point.

For Virtu Financial’s portfolio, this SMR stake comprises 1.16% of their reportable assets under management. Their top holdings tell a different story—traditional tech and healthcare dominate their positions:

Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE: BRK-A): $224 million (12.5% of portfolio)
Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN): $42.50 million (2.4%)
UnitedHealth Group (NYSE: UNH): $38.63 million (2.2%)
Eli Lilly (NASDAQ: LLY): $33.61 million (1.9%)
Fox Corporation (NASDAQ: FOX): $32.42 million (1.8%)

Understanding NuScale’s Business

NuScale Power develops modular, light-water nuclear reactors marketed under the VOYGR brand. Each reactor module generates 77 megawatts of electricity, and multiple modules can be scaled up to create power plants reaching 924 megawatts of capacity. The company’s approach targets electricity generation, district heating, and industrial process heat applications.

The firm currently operates at a loss—reporting negative net income of $379.94 million over the trailing twelve months while generating $63.90 million in revenue. With a market capitalization of $6.69 billion, NuScale remains in development and commercialization phase.

The Commercial Catalyst

What’s particularly interesting is NuScale’s partnership with ENTRA1 Energy. ENTRA1 recently secured contracts including a major deployment with Tennessee Valley Authority spanning seven states, involving up to six gigawatts of nuclear capacity. Though NuScale itself hasn’t deployed units at scale yet, these partnership wins validate market demand for SMR technology.

Why Pressure Has Built

Recent stock decline stems from multiple factors. General profit-taking among nuclear energy stocks occurred as market conditions shifted through late 2025. Additionally, Fluor (NYSE: FLR), a significant NuScale shareholder, has been liquidating its stake to crystallize gains from the nuclear energy rally that followed Trump administration policy announcements supporting SMR expansion earlier in the year.

The Investment Thesis

Institutional investors like Virtu Financial are apparently betting that NuScale’s long-term positioning in the SMR space—amplified by supportive energy policy and growing commercial partnerships—outweighs near-term profit pressures and competitive execution risks. The move represents a calculated wager that market sentiment has overcorrected on valuation following the selloff.

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