Applied Digital (NASDAQ:APLD) Stock Rating Upgraded by Roth Capital

Applied Digital (NASDAQ:APLD) was upgraded by Roth Capital to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report issued on Wednesday, Zacks reports.

Several other research analysts have also weighed in on the stock. Needham & Company LLC dropped their price objective on shares of Applied Digital from $83.00 to $70.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 8th. B. Riley Financial reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $75.00 target price (up from $66.00) on shares of Applied Digital in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Zacks Research lowered shares of Applied Digital from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 26th. Morgan Stanley set a $41.00 target price on shares of Applied Digital and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, October 9th. Finally, Rothschild & Co Redburn set a $22.00 price target on shares of Applied Digital and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, September 21st. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Applied Digital presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $59.75.

Applied Digital Stock Performance

Shares of APLD opened at $20.98 on Wednesday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $25.51 and its 200-day moving average is $32.26. The company has a current ratio of 2.56, a quick ratio of 2.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.90. Applied Digital has a fifty-two week low of $17.65 and a fifty-two week high of $50.72.

Applied Digital (NASDAQ:APLD) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 7th. The company reported ($0.01) EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.30) by $0.29. The business had revenue of $300.39 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $116.29 million. Applied Digital had a negative net margin of 51.28% and a negative return on equity of 27.21%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 367.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted ($0.03) earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Applied Digital will post -2.06 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Applied Digital

In other news, President Jason Gechen Zhang purchased 300,000 shares of Applied Digital stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 16th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $18.86 per share, for a total transaction of $5,658,000.00. Following the acquisition, the president directly owned 2,839,227 shares in the company, valued at $53,547,821.22. This represents a 11.81% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Richard Nottenburg sold 31,250 shares of Applied Digital stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $21.84, for a total value of $682,500.00. Following the sale, the director owned 102,128 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,230,475.52. This represents a 23.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Company insiders own 9.50% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Applied Digital

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC raised its position in Applied Digital by 244.3% during the first quarter. Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,205 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 855 shares in the last quarter. FNY Investment Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in Applied Digital in the second quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Root Financial Partners LLC bought a new stake in Applied Digital in the third quarter worth approximately $52,000. Global Assets Advisory LLC bought a new stake in Applied Digital in the first quarter worth approximately $53,000. Finally, CoreCap Advisors LLC grew its position in Applied Digital by 246.6% in the third quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC now owns 2,194 shares of the company’s stock worth $53,000 after acquiring an additional 1,561 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.67% of the company’s stock.

Key Applied Digital News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Applied Digital agreed with Soluna Holdings to develop a 50-megawatt AI and HPC data center at Soluna’s Project Dorothy 3 site in Texas. Applied will own 51% of the joint venture, giving it majority control of the project and potential exposure to future data-center revenue. Soluna Holdings and Applied Digital Partner to Develop 50 MW AI-Focused Data Center in Texas
• Positive Sentiment: The facility is expected to use electricity from a nearby wind farm, supporting Applied Digital’s positioning around power-efficient and renewable-energy-backed AI infrastructure. Applied’s majority-owned neocloud business, ChronoScale, also signed a non-binding letter of intent to lease the site, potentially providing an anchor customer. Soluna and Applied Digital to build 50 MW wind-powered AI data center in Texas
• Positive Sentiment: Roth MKM reinstated coverage with a Buy rating and a $35 price target, implying substantial upside from recent trading levels. The renewed coverage added another catalyst alongside the project announcement. Roth/MKM Reinstates Applied Digital at Buy
• Positive Sentiment: Applied Digital’s CEO and president recently bought more than $6.6 million of company stock, signaling management confidence after the selloff. Powering Up: Applied Digital Execs Buy $6.7M in Stock
• Neutral Sentiment: APLD also benefited from broader enthusiasm for AI data-center developers as power scarcity and strong demand for computing capacity continued to support the sector.
• Negative Sentiment: The Texas project is still under development, and ChronoScale’s lease commitment is non-binding. Large capital requirements, Applied Digital’s high leverage, and the company’s continuing losses could limit the speed and profitability of expansion.

Applied Digital Company Profile

Applied Digital Corporation (NASDAQ: APLD) develops and operates digital infrastructure designed to support high-performance computing and artificial intelligence applications. The company provides data-center capacity, hosting services and related infrastructure for customers that require substantial computing power and energy resources.

Its business includes high-performance computing data centers and cloud services intended to support artificial intelligence, machine learning, cryptocurrency mining and other compute-intensive workloads.