SMR Straddle Strategy
SMR (NuScale Power Corporation), in the Utilities sector, (Renewable Utilities industry), listed on NYSE.
NuScale Power Corporation develops and sells modular light water reactor nuclear power plants to supply energy for electrical generation, district heating, desalination, hydrogen production, and other process heat applications. It offers NuScale Power Module, a water reactor that can generate 77 megawatts of electricity (MWe); The VOYGR-12 power plant that can generate 924 MWe; and four-module VOYGR-4 and six-module VOYGR-6 plants, as well as other configurations based on customer needs. NuScale Power Corporation was founded in 2007 and is headquartered in Portland, Oregon. NuScale Power Corporation operates as a subsidiary of Fluor Enterprises, Inc.
SMR (NuScale Power Corporation) trades in the Utilities sector, specifically Renewable Utilities, with a market capitalization of approximately $3.57B, a beta of 2.25 versus the broader market, a 52-week range of 8.85-57.42, average daily share volume of 31.3M, a public-listing history dating back to 2022, approximately 330 full-time employees. These structural characteristics shape how SMR stock options price implied volatility around earnings windows, capital events, and macro-driven sector rotations.
A beta of 2.25 indicates SMR has historically moved more than the broader market, amplifying both the directional payoff and the realized volatility relative to an index-equivalent position.
What is a straddle on SMR?
A long straddle buys an ATM call and an ATM put at the same strike, profiting from a large move in either direction; max loss equals the combined debit when the underlying pins to the strike at expiration.
Current SMR snapshot
As of May 15, 2026, spot at $11.30, ATM IV 96.86%, IV rank 34.69%, expected move 27.77%. The straddle on SMR below is built from the same end-of-day chain, with strikes snapped to listed contracts and premiums pulled from the bid/ask midpoint at a 28-day expiry.
Why this straddle structure on SMR specifically: SMR IV at 96.86% is mid-range versus its 1-year history, so strategy selection should anchor more to the directional thesis than to the IV regime, with a market-implied 1-standard-deviation move of approximately 27.77% (roughly $3.14 on the underlying). The 28-day window matched to the front-month expiry keeps theta exposure bounded while still capturing the post-snapshot move; longer-dated SMR expiries trade a higher absolute premium for lower per-day decay. Position sizing on SMR should anchor to the underlying notional of $11.30 per share and to the trader's directional view on SMR stock.
SMR straddle setup
The SMR straddle below is built from the end-of-day chain, with each option leg priced at the bid/ask midpoint of its listed strike. With SMR near $11.30, the first option leg uses a $11.50 strike; additional legs (when the strategy has them) anchor to spot-relative offsets. Premiums come from the bid/ask midpoint on the listed SMR chain at a 28-day expiry; the cross-strike IV skew is reflected directly in the per-leg values rather than approximated. Quantity sizing assumes one contract per option leg (or 100 SMR shares for the stock leg in covered calls and collars).
| Action | Type | Strike / Basis | Premium (est) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Buy 1 | Call | $11.50 | $1.16 |
| Buy 1 | Put | $11.50 | $1.28 |
SMR straddle risk and reward
- Net Premium / Debit
- -$243.50
- Max Profit (per contract)
- Unbounded
- Max Loss (per contract)
- -$241.03
- Breakeven(s)
- $9.07, $13.94
- Risk / Reward Ratio
- Unbounded
Upside max profit is unbounded; downside max profit is bounded at the strike minus the combined call plus put debit (reached at zero). Max loss equals the combined debit times 100 (reached when the underlying pins to the strike). Two breakevens at strike plus debit and strike minus debit.
SMR straddle payoff curve
Modeled P&L at expiration across a range of underlying prices for the straddle on SMR. Each row is one sampled price point from the computed payoff curve; the full curve uses 200 price points internally before being summarized into 10 rows here.
| Underlying Price | % From Spot | P&L at Expiration |
|---|---|---|
| $0.01 | -99.9% | +$905.50 |
| $2.51 | -77.8% | +$655.76 |
| $5.00 | -55.7% | +$406.02 |
| $7.50 | -33.6% | +$156.28 |
| $10.00 | -11.5% | -$93.45 |
| $12.50 | +10.6% | -$143.81 |
| $14.99 | +32.7% | +$105.93 |
| $17.49 | +54.8% | +$355.67 |
| $19.99 | +76.9% | +$605.41 |
| $22.49 | +99.0% | +$855.15 |
When traders use straddle on SMR
Straddles on SMR are pure-volatility plays that profit from large moves in either direction; traders typically buy SMR straddles ahead of earnings, FDA decisions, or other catalysts where the realized move is expected to exceed the implied move priced into the chain.
SMR thesis for this straddle
The market-implied 1-standard-deviation range for SMR extends from approximately $8.16 on the downside to $14.44 on the upside. A SMR long straddle is a pure-volatility play: it profits when the underlying moves far enough from the strike in either direction to overcome the combined call plus put debit, regardless of direction. Current SMR IV rank near 34.69% is mid-range against its 1-year distribution, so the IV signal is neutral; the straddle thesis on SMR should anchor more to the directional view and the expected-move geometry. As a Utilities name, SMR options can move on sector-level news flow (peer earnings, regulatory updates, industry-specific macro data) in addition to SMR-specific events.
SMR straddle positions are structurally neutral / high-volatility (long premium); the modeled P&L assumes European-style exercise at expiration and ignores early assignment, transaction costs, dividends paid before expiry on the stock leg (when present), and the bid-ask spread on the listed chain. SMR positions also carry Utilities sector concentration risk; news flow inside the sector (peer earnings, regulatory shifts, supply-chain headlines) can move SMR alongside the broader basket even when SMR-specific fundamentals are unchanged. Always rebuild the position from current SMR chain quotes before placing a trade.
Frequently asked questions
- What is a straddle on SMR?
- A straddle on SMR is the straddle strategy applied to SMR (stock). The strategy is structurally neutral / high-volatility (long premium): A long straddle buys an ATM call and an ATM put at the same strike, profiting from a large move in either direction; max loss equals the combined debit when the underlying pins to the strike at expiration. With SMR stock trading near $11.30, the strikes shown on this page are snapped to the nearest listed SMR chain strike and the premiums come straight from the end-of-day bid/ask midpoint.
- How are SMR straddle max profit and max loss calculated?
- Upside max profit is unbounded; downside max profit is bounded at the strike minus the combined call plus put debit (reached at zero). Max loss equals the combined debit times 100 (reached when the underlying pins to the strike). Two breakevens at strike plus debit and strike minus debit. For the SMR straddle priced from the end-of-day chain at a 30-day expiry (ATM IV 96.86%), the computed maximum profit is unbounded per contract and the computed maximum loss is -$241.03 per contract. Live intraday quotes will differ as the chain moves through the trading session.
- What is the breakeven for a SMR straddle?
- The breakeven for the SMR straddle priced on this page is roughly $9.07 and $13.94 at expiration, derived from end-of-day chain premiums. Breakeven is the underlying price at which the strategy's P&L crosses zero ignoring transaction costs and assignment risk. The current SMR market-implied 1-standard-deviation expected move is approximately 27.77%; if the move sits well outside the breakeven distance, the structure's risk-reward becomes correspondingly tighter.
- When should you consider a straddle on SMR?
- Straddles on SMR are pure-volatility plays that profit from large moves in either direction; traders typically buy SMR straddles ahead of earnings, FDA decisions, or other catalysts where the realized move is expected to exceed the implied move priced into the chain.
- How does current SMR implied volatility affect this straddle?
- SMR ATM IV is at 96.86% with IV rank near 34.69%, which is mid-range against its 1-year history. Strategy selection depends more on directional thesis and expected move than on a strong IV signal.