Could Investing $10,000 in NuScale Power Make You a Millionaire?

By James Brumley – Mar 10, 2026 at 7:05PM ESTKey PointsNuScale is one of handful of companies that could revolutionize and rekindle the nuclear power industry.For all the hype, however, this particular aspect of the nuclear power business isn’t going to be enormous compared to this company’s current market cap.While there’s reward potential to be sure, there’s also too much risk to merit taking on a significantly sized investment in this outfit at this time.The premise seems brilliant now that it's proven safely possible. That is, reliable low-cost electricity provided by small, onsite nuclear power plants. Even if NuScale Power (SMR 0.99%) isn't the only company developing such small modular reactors -- or SMRs -- there seems to be room for more than one player in the budding business. But could a relatively small investment in this particular ticker turn into a seven-figure sum within a single lifetime? Despite all the bullish buzz that's surrounded this stock since 2023 when the U.S.

Nuclear Regulatory Commission first certified the design of NuScale's SMR, probably not. Not an actual industry just yet Don't misunderstand. NuScale isn't a bad prospect even if it does bring above-average risk to the table. Chief among those risks of course is that -- despite several approved SMR designs and installation work now underway -- only two such power production facilities are operational right now, neither of which was built by NuScale Power. The world's never actually seen small modular reactors function en masse. It won't anytime soon, either. Requiring years just to prepare a site, most of the ones in the works right now won't even start becoming operational until or after 2030, and even then it will take many more years for them to become somewhat common. It could take even longer for the world to become truly comfortable with small nuclear reactors operating anywhere, and eventually, everywhere. Much could happen to sidetrack the movement in the meantime. Image source: Getty Images. Just for the sake of argument, though, let's say small modular reactors live up to every expectation regarding safety, reliability, and power output. From an investor's perspective, does the fiscal math make sense? Yes and no. It's not going to be an especially big industry Sure, the hype may be well deserved. In the end, however, the small modular reactor business just isn't going to be particularly big. An outlook from Precedence Research suggests it will only be worth $16 billion per year by 2034, jibing with predictions from Roots Analysis and Straits Research. For perspective, NuScale's current market cap is already just under $4 billion. ExpandNYSE: SMRNuScale PowerToday's Change(-0.99%) $-0.12Current Price$12.04Key Data PointsMarket Cap$3.9BDay's Range$12.01 - $12.5552wk Range$11.08 - $57.42Volume706KAvg Vol26MGross Margin33.84% NuScale Power won't be the only outfit jockeying for this business.

Nano Nuclear Energy and Oklo are just a couple other names also developing SMRs. More will likely enter the market in the meantime. But the company doesn't need to win all of this business to succeed, It just needs to win its fair share of it. There is room for upside even with just a small piece of the industry's future revenue. Good, but not that good There's the rub for hopeful investors, however -- while there's potential upside here, it's not 100-fold potential that could turn a $10,000 investment into $1 million. It would likely take something more along the lines of a $100,000 upfront investment in NuScale now to have any realistic shot of this position reaching the million-dollar mark anytime in the foreseeable future. And that's a considerably greater amount of money to put into an unproven prospect like this one. Most investors wisely won't want to risk that much on this sort of trade. Still, that doesn't make it a bad (even if a somewhat riskier) opportunity. Most $10,000 investments aren't going to grow into $1 million in the span of a lifetime. It takes something truly once-in-a-generation special like Amazon -- or, more recently, Nvidia -- to do something like that. Just keep it all in perspective, and your expectations in check.Read NextMar 10, 2026 •By Reuben Gregg BrewerEurope's First NuScale-Powered Modular Reactor Project Is Coming. Here's What Investors Need to Know.Mar 9, 2026 •By Steven PorrelloWhat Is One of the Best Nuclear Stocks to Hold For the Next 10 Years?Mar 8, 2026 •By Neha ChamariaWhy NuScale Power Stock Plunged in February and Could Fall FurtherMar 8, 2026 •By Steven PorrelloCould This $13 Stock Be Your Ticket to Millionaire Status?Mar 6, 2026 •By Neha ChamariaBetween Price Target Cuts and Poor Market Sentiment, NuScale Power Stock is Having a Rough Week. Does the Dip Represent a Buying Opportunity?Mar 6, 2026 •By Leo SunBetter Nuclear Energy Stock: NuScale Power (SMR) vs. Oklo (OKLO)About the AuthorJames Brumley is a contributing Motley Fool stock market analyst covering consumer staples and consumer discretionary stocks. James is a former licensed stockbroker with Charles Schwab, and a registered investment adviser. He holds a bachelor’s degree in business management with a specialization in finance from Transylvania University.TMFjbrumleyX@jbrumleyStocks MentionedNuScale PowerNYSE: SMR$12.03(-1.07%)-$0.13AmazonNASDAQ: AMZN$214.29(+0.38%)+$0.80NvidiaNASDAQ: NVDA$184.72(+1.13%)+$2.07OkloNYSE: OKLO$61.40(-0.61%)-$0.38Nano Nuclear EnergyNASDAQ: NNE$23.88(+0.84%)+$0.20*Average returns of all recommendations since inception. Cost basis and return based on previous market day close.