Applied Digital (NASDAQ:APLD) Shares Up 8.5% – Time to Buy?

Applied Digital Corporation (NASDAQ:APLD) shares shot up 8.5% during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $49.35 and last traded at $48.98. 25,505,609 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 3% from the average session volume of 26,271,682 shares. The stock had previously closed at $45.14.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have commented on APLD. Citizens Jmp upped their price target on Applied Digital from $40.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a “market outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 21st. Citigroup reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Applied Digital in a research report on Thursday, May 21st. Zacks Research raised Applied Digital from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Applied Digital in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Finally, Northland Securities set a $56.00 target price on Applied Digital in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Applied Digital presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $59.11.

Applied Digital Price Performance

The company has a current ratio of 2.38, a quick ratio of 2.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.65. The company has a market cap of $14.00 billion, a PE ratio of -66.19 and a beta of 5.69. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $33.12 and a two-hundred day moving average of $31.05.

Applied Digital (NASDAQ:APLD) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 8th. The company reported ($0.36) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 business had revenue of $108.55 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $78.47 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted ($0.08) earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 139.3% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Applied Digital Corporation will post -0.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Applied Digital

In other Applied Digital news, Director Richard N. Nottenburg sold 12,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $34.59, for a total transaction of $432,375.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 208,378 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,207,795.02. This trade represents a 5.66% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Douglas S. Miller sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, April 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $34.98, for a total value of $349,800.00. Following the sale, the director owned 184,859 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,466,367.82. This represents a 5.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 35,000 shares of company stock worth $1,182,175. Company insiders own 9.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Applied Digital

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Noble Wealth Management PBC purchased a new position in shares of Applied Digital in the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Albion Financial Group UT purchased a new position in shares of Applied Digital in the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Activest Wealth Management purchased a new position in shares of Applied Digital in the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Ameriflex Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Applied Digital in the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Finally, McMillan Office Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Applied Digital in the 4th quarter worth $25,000. 65.67% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other 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.