Applied Digital (NASDAQ:APLD) Trading Down 1.7% Following Insider Selling

Applied Digital Corporation (NASDAQ:APLD)’s share price was down 1.7% on Wednesday after an insider sold shares in the company. The company traded as low as $34.71 and last traded at $36.10. Approximately 30,249,794 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 37% from the average daily volume of 48,272,605 shares. The stock had previously closed at $36.71.

Specifically, Director Douglas S. Miller sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $38.54, for a total transaction of $385,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 200,859 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,741,105.86. The trade was a 4.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently issued reports on APLD. Northland Securities reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $40.00 price objective on shares of Applied Digital in a research report on Tuesday, December 30th. HC Wainwright raised their price objective on shares of Applied Digital from $20.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 10th. Freedom Capital upgraded shares of Applied Digital to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. Arete assumed coverage on shares of Applied Digital in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. They issued a “buy” rating for the company. Finally, Citigroup reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Applied Digital in a report on Tuesday, December 30th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have given a Buy rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $33.27.

Key Applied Digital News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 revenue and guidance: Management reported a big revenue beat (Q4 revenue well above consensus) and signaled strong advance contracts for Phase II — this supports a multi-quarter growth outlook. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst upgrades and higher price targets: Several brokers have boosted targets and reiterated Buy ratings, including a recent ~11% target lift reported in the press — fueling headline-driven buying prior to today’s pullback. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Corporate leadership move: Co‑founder Jason Zhang was named President, a governance/ops signal investors typically view as supportive for execution during rapid expansion. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Industry recognition: Multiple roundups now position APLD as a top GPU-as-a-Service/data-center play (combining GPU hosting, owned facilities and developer platform), which boosts medium‑term demand expectations. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst deep-dive: Some bullish write-ups (e.g., Seeking Alpha) argue the company has removed prior “overhangs” by spinning off unprofitable cloud units, but these are longer-horizon catalysts and depend on successful execution. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: High volatility and positioning: APLD has very high beta and sizeable institutional ownership — that amplifies moves (big upside on good news, sharp pullbacks on profit-taking). No link provided.
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling: Director Douglas S. Miller sold 10,000 shares (~$385k at the time), which can trigger short-term selling or signal some insiders trimming positions after the run. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: EPS miss and margins: The company missed EPS estimates for the quarter and still shows negative net margins — a reminder that revenue growth is not yet translating into positive earnings. Read More.

Applied Digital Stock Down 2.4%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.79, a current ratio of 4.82 and a quick ratio of 4.82. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $27.69 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $22.48. The firm has a market cap of $9.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -65.22 and a beta of 6.89.

Applied Digital (NASDAQ:APLD) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 7th. The company reported ($0.11) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.09) by ($0.02). Applied Digital had a negative net margin of 43.49% and a negative return on equity of 13.53%. The company had revenue of $126.59 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $82.22 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned ($0.06) earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 250.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Applied Digital Corporation will post -0.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Applied Digital

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp acquired a new position in shares of Applied Digital during the second quarter worth about $25,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC purchased a new position in shares of Applied Digital during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Applied Digital by 56,450.0% in the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 1,131 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 1,129 shares during the period. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Digital in the second quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Finally, Dagco Inc. acquired a new position in Applied Digital during the third quarter worth $27,000. 65.67% of the stock is 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.