Applied Digital (NASDAQ:APLD) Shares Gap Up – Here’s What Happened

Applied Digital Corporation (NASDAQ:APLD) shares gapped up prior to trading on Tuesday . The stock had previously closed at $27.60, but opened at $29.10. Applied Digital shares last traded at $31.1670, with a volume of 11,874,067 shares changing hands.

Applied Digital News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: HC Wainwright lifted its FY2027 EPS forecast sharply to $0.69 and laid out positive quarterly EPS projections for 2027, suggesting a path to profitability that can support higher valuation multiples. HC Wainwright estimates (MarketBeat)
• Positive Sentiment: Macro tailwind: GPU prices are surging and MarketBeat highlights GPU-as-a-Service providers as beneficiaries — tighter GPU supply/pricing could boost Applied Digital’s revenue mix and margins if it captures higher pricing or demand for hosted GPU capacity. GPU Prices Are Surging—3 Ways to Play (MarketBeat)
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst consensus sits around a “Moderate Buy,” reflecting mixed views; this provides some support but not a unanimous conviction to push the stock much higher on its own. Average “Moderate Buy” (American Banking News)
• Neutral Sentiment: Longer-term takes (The Motley Fool) stress that upside is real but hinge on execution and tenant diversification — useful context for investors sizing risk/reward but not a direct catalyst. Where Will APLD Be in 5 Years? (The Motley Fool)
• Negative Sentiment: Coverage pieces (Yahoo/Zacks) flag that revenue growth has been accompanied by mounting costs, ongoing losses and concentration risk from a single large tenant — these structural risks can cap multiple expansion and raise downside if growth slows. APLD’s Losses Continue Despite Growth Push (Yahoo Finance)
• Negative Sentiment: Near-term estimates were cut: HC Wainwright and Northland trimmed FY2026 and Q4?2026 EPS expectations, signaling profit timing and margin pressure that could weigh on short-term performance if results miss the newly lowered targets. Analyst estimate changes (MarketBeat)

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on APLD shares. Freedom Capital raised Applied Digital to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 6th. Roth Mkm reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Applied Digital in a research report on Tuesday, February 17th. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $41.00 target price on shares of Applied Digital in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. Northland Securities set a $56.00 target price on Applied Digital in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. Finally, Texas Capital upgraded Applied Digital to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 20th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have issued a Buy rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $39.20.

Applied Digital Stock Up 10.2%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.65, a quick ratio of 2.38 and a current ratio of 2.38. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.69 billion, a P/E ratio of -40.95 and a beta of 7.25. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $28.74 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $29.57.

Applied Digital (NASDAQ:APLD) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 8th. The company reported ($0.36) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.13) by ($0.23). Applied Digital had a negative net margin of 52.84% and a negative return on equity of 15.91%. The firm had revenue of $108.55 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $78.47 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted ($0.08) earnings per share. Applied Digital’s revenue was up 139.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts forecast that Applied Digital Corporation will post -0.96 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Chuck Hastings sold 45,987 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 sale, the director directly owned 388,372 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,979,508.04. The trade was a 10.59% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Wes Cummins sold 165,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.42, for a total value of $6,009,300.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 4,176,329 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $152,101,902.18. This trade represents a 3.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 234,593 shares of company stock worth $8,617,878. 9.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in Applied Digital by 36.4% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 24,168,082 shares of the company’s stock worth $592,601,000 after buying an additional 6,445,908 shares during the last quarter. Situational Awareness LP grew its stake in Applied Digital by 87.0% during the 4th quarter. Situational Awareness LP now owns 11,339,060 shares of the company’s stock worth $278,034,000 after buying an additional 5,274,905 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Applied Digital by 5.1% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 6,285,820 shares of the company’s stock worth $154,151,000 after buying an additional 304,228 shares during the last quarter. Value Aligned Research Advisors LLC bought a new position in Applied Digital during the 4th quarter worth $138,380,000. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its stake in Applied Digital by 24,356.8% during the 2nd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 5,219,565 shares of the company’s stock worth $52,561,000 after buying an additional 5,198,223 shares during the last quarter. 65.67% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Applied Digital

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.