Applied Digital (NASDAQ:APLD) Shares Up 3.5% - Still a Buy?

Key Points

• Shares rose 3.5% intraday to about $32.43 (high $33.10) on Wednesday despite trading volume ~37% below average, and the stock carries a market cap of ~$9.27 billion with a high beta of 7.25.
• The analyst consensus is a "Moderate Buy" with a mean target of $42.78, though coverage is mixed — several buy/strong-buy ratings coexist with a recent Zacks downgrade to strong sell.
• Applied Digital reported an EPS miss (‑$0.36 vs. ‑$0.13 est.) while beating revenue expectations ($108.6M vs. $78.5M) and delivering 139.3% year‑over‑year revenue growth, but remains unprofitable with a -52.84% net margin.

Applied Digital Corporation (NASDAQ:APLD - Get Free Report) shot up 3.5% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $33.10 and last traded at $32.43. 16,935,848 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 37% from the average session volume of 26,697,723 shares. The stock had previously closed at $31.32.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently issued reports on APLD. Zacks Research downgraded Applied Digital from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 8th. Arete Research started coverage on Applied Digital in a report on Wednesday, January 7th. They issued a "buy" rating for the company. Needham & Company LLC restated a "buy" rating and set a $41.00 target price on shares of Applied Digital in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. Lake Street Capital restated a "buy" rating and set a $45.00 target price on shares of Applied Digital in a research note on Tuesday, December 30th. Finally, Texas Capital upgraded Applied Digital to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 20th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Applied Digital presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $42.78.

Applied Digital Stock Up 3.5%

The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $28.35 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $29.87. 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 $9.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -43.82 and a beta of 7.25.

Applied Digital (NASDAQ:APLD - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results 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). The business had revenue of $108.55 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $78.47 million. Applied Digital had a negative net margin of 52.84% and a negative return on equity of 15.91%. The firm's revenue was up 139.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned ($0.08) earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Applied Digital Corporation will post -0.52 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Applied Digital

In related news, Director Chuck Hastings sold 45,987 shares of Applied Digital stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $38.57, for a total value of $1,773,718.59. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 388,372 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,979,508.04. This trade represents a 10.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 9.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Applied Digital

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of APLD. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in Applied Digital by 36.4% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 24,168,082 shares of the company's stock worth $592,601,000 after purchasing an additional 6,445,908 shares in the last quarter. Value Aligned Research Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Applied Digital in the fourth quarter worth about $138,380,000. Situational Awareness LP grew its stake in Applied Digital by 87.0% in the fourth quarter. Situational Awareness LP now owns 11,339,060 shares of the company's stock worth $278,034,000 after purchasing an additional 5,274,905 shares in the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its stake in Applied Digital by 24,356.8% in the second quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 5,219,565 shares of the company's stock worth $52,561,000 after purchasing an additional 5,198,223 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Marex Group plc grew its stake in Applied Digital by 38,484.6% in the fourth quarter. Marex Group plc now owns 3,904,759 shares of the company's stock worth $95,745,000 after purchasing an additional 3,894,639 shares in the last quarter. 65.67% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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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