Applied Digital (NASDAQ:APLD) Shares Up 11.9% - Should You Buy?

Key Points

• Shares jumped 11.9% intraday on heavy volume, trading around $39.88 versus a prior close of $35.63.
• Applied Digital completed the spin‑off of its cloud unit into ChronoScale, closed a $300 million senior secured bridge led by Goldman for a third AI data center, and signed a 15‑year, $7.5B lease that pushes contracted lease revenue above $23B, boosting revenue visibility and investor interest.
• Despite analyst enthusiasm (consensus "Moderate Buy", $44.33 target), the company reports negative EPS, elevated leverage (debt/equity ~1.65), recent insider stock sales, and execution/concentration risks tied to large hyperscaler leases that could drive volatility.

Shares of Applied Digital Corporation (NASDAQ:APLD - Get Free Report) shot up 11.9% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $39.94 and last traded at $39.88. 32,181,158 shares were traded during mid-day trading, an increase of 20% from the average session volume of 26,715,783 shares. The stock had previously closed at $35.63.

Applied Digital News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Applied Digital this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Applied Digital completed the previously announced separation of its cloud business, establishing ChronoScale as an independent public company (ticker CHRN). The move can unlock value and create a clearer growth profile for APLD’s infrastructure business. Applied Digital Completes Separation of Cloud Business
• Positive Sentiment: Market reports highlight the ChronoScale spin‑off and related coverage, increasing investor attention as the new cloud entity begins public trading — a catalyst for re‑rating APLD if ChronoScale’s valuation diverges. Applied Digital spins off cloud unit into ChronoScale
• Positive Sentiment: Applied Digital closed a $300 million senior secured bridge facility led by Goldman Sachs to fund construction of its third AI data center at Polari — gives the company ready capital to accelerate delivery of revenue‑generating capacity. Applied Digital Announces $300 Million Senior Secured Bridge Facility
• Positive Sentiment: Coverage notes the $300M financing and associated expansion drove buying interest and was reported alongside a continued sell‑side focus on APLD’s growth runway. Applied Digital (APLD) Raises $300M for Expansion, Climbs 6.2%
• Positive Sentiment: Applied Digital signed a 15‑year, $7.5B lease with an investment‑grade hyperscaler at Delta Forge 1, lifting total contracted lease revenue above $23B — significantly increasing long‑term revenue visibility and validating demand for APLD’s AI campus strategy. Applied Digital’s Multi Billion AI Lease Deepens Revenue Visibility And Risks
• Neutral Sentiment: Applied Digital will retain approximately 97% ownership of ChronoScale and made a ~$15.75M investment at closing — maintaining exposure to the cloud business while separating operations; this preserves upside but limits immediate free‑float value realization. Applied Digital Completes Separation of Cloud Business
• Negative Sentiment: Despite the positive headlines, analysts and commentary flag execution and concentration risks: very large, long‑dated hyperscaler leases increase exposure to a small number of customers and expansion financed with bridge debt raises leverage and execution risk on timely project delivery. These factors could pressure margins or drive volatility if buildout or customer plans change. Applied Digital’s Multi Billion AI Lease Deepens Revenue Visibility And Risks

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on APLD. Arete Research began coverage on Applied Digital in a report on Wednesday, January 7th. They issued a "buy" rating on the stock. Freedom Capital raised Applied Digital to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. Texas Capital raised Applied Digital to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 20th. Weiss Ratings reissued a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Applied Digital in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Finally, Roth Mkm reissued a "buy" rating and set a $65.00 price objective on shares of Applied Digital in a research note on Thursday, April 23rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $44.33.

Applied Digital Stock Up 11.9%

The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $28.28 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $30.01. The company has a quick ratio of 2.38, a current ratio of 2.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.65. The company has a market capitalization of $11.40 billion, a P/E ratio of -53.89 and a beta of 5.69.

Applied Digital (NASDAQ:APLD - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 8th. The company reported ($0.36) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.13) by ($0.23). Applied Digital had a negative return on equity of 15.91% and a negative net margin of 52.84%.The company had revenue of $108.55 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $78.47 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned ($0.08) earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 139.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts predict that Applied Digital Corporation will post -0.52 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Applied Digital

In other Applied Digital news, Director Douglas S. Miller sold 10,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $34.98, for a total transaction of $349,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 184,859 shares in the company, valued at $6,466,367.82. The trade was a 5.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Richard N. Nottenburg sold 12,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $34.59, for a total value of $432,375.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 208,378 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,207,795.02. This trade represents a 5.66% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 35,000 shares of company stock valued at $1,182,175 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 9.50% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Applied Digital by 8.6% during the fourth quarter. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 3,800 shares of the company's stock valued at $93,000 after buying an additional 300 shares during the period. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Applied Digital by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC now owns 21,332 shares of the company's stock valued at $523,000 after buying an additional 318 shares during the period. Brookstone Capital Management boosted its position in shares of Applied Digital by 3.6% during the fourth quarter. Brookstone Capital Management now owns 9,275 shares of the company's stock valued at $227,000 after buying an additional 321 shares during the period. ProShare Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Applied Digital by 1.0% during the third quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 36,652 shares of the company's stock valued at $841,000 after buying an additional 376 shares during the period. Finally, Independent Advisor Alliance boosted its position in shares of Applied Digital by 4.6% during the fourth quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance now owns 9,215 shares of the company's stock valued at $226,000 after buying an additional 407 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.67% of the company's stock.

Applied Digital Company Profile

Applied Digital NASDAQ: APLD is a technology company specializing in the development and operation of large-scale digital infrastructure and sustainable Bitcoin mining solutions. Through its integrated platform, the company designs, builds and manages turnkey data center facilities while also providing comprehensive hosting services for cloud, colocation and enterprise computing needs. Applied Digital's modular approach to facility design enables rapid deployment of capacity and streamlined integration of power, cooling and network connectivity.

In addition to its data center business, Applied Digital operates a network of Bitcoin mining sites that leverage vertically integrated capabilities, including hardware procurement, mining farm engineering, energy management and real-time performance monitoring.

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