Can X-Energy's Xe-100 Capture the Growing Demand for Reliable AI Power?

X-Energy, Inc.’s XE flagship Xe-100 is an advanced high-temperature gas-cooled small modular reactor designed to generate 80 MW of electricity or 200 MW of thermal output. The company has designed the reactors to be deployed in groups of four, producing 320 MW of electricity. 

The technology is particularly relevant to AI infrastructure because data centers require continuous power rather than intermittent supply. X-Energy says its four-reactor configuration is designed to provide the reliability and redundancy required for AI and industrial applications. The company also expects the Xe-100 to achieve a 95% capacity factor.

The most important part of X-Energy’s story may be its customer base. Dow, Amazon and Centrica are expected to underpin the company's initial Xe-100 fleet. If their contingent rights are exercised in full, the projects represent a pipeline of approximately 11.5 GW across 144 reactors in the United States and the U.K.

One of X-Energy's key differentiators is that it is developing both the reactor and its fuel. Its TRISO-X fuel uses HALEU and is being manufactured through the company's TX-1 facility in Oak Ridge, TN. TX-1 is designed to support the first 11 Xe-100 reactors at steady-state operations, while a planned TX-2 facility could eventually support up to 44 reactors annually.

If X-Energy successfully moves from demonstration projects to repeatable commercial deployments, its large customer pipeline could provide a foundation for substantial long-term growth. The next several years, however, will be about proving that the Xe-100 can move from an ambitious design to a commercially viable reactor fleet.

Companies Benefiting From the Trend

Beyond X-Energy, several companies across the nuclear power and energy infrastructure value chain stand to benefit from the growing demand for reliable, low-carbon power driven by AI and data centers.

NuScale Power SMR is developing its SMR technology for utility and industrial applications, offering investors another way to gain exposure to the potential shift toward smaller, modular nuclear plants.

Centrus Energy LEU: Advanced reactors such as X-Energy's Xe-100 require HALEU (high-assay low-enriched uranium), and Centrus is a key U.S. supplier of the fuel. X-Energy has also entered into long-term HALEU arrangements involving 
Centrus.

XE Stock’s Earnings Estimates

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2027 earnings per share indicates an increase of 31.91% year over year.

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XE Stock Trading at a Premium

XE is trading at a premium relative to the industry, with a forward 12-month price-to-sales of 11.72X compared with the industry average of 4.85X.

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XE Stock’s Price Performance

In the past month, the company’s shares have risen 19.1% against the industry’s 2% decline.

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XE’s Zacks Rank

The company currently has a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell). 

You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).

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