Applied Digital (NASDAQ:APLD) Hits New 1-Year Low on Insider Selling

Applied Digital Corporation (NASDAQ:APLD)’s share price reached a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Thursday following insider selling activity. The stock traded as low as $18.70 and last traded at $18.6320, with a volume of 6,138,776 shares. The stock had previously closed at $20.33.

Specifically, Director Richard Nottenburg sold 31,250 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $21.84, for a total transaction of $682,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 102,128 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,230,475.52. The trade was a 23.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have commented on APLD. UBS Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Applied Digital in a report on Thursday, October 8th. Zacks Research cut shares of Applied Digital from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 26th. Wells Fargo & Company reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $55.00 price objective (up from $50.00) on shares of Applied Digital in a research report on Thursday, October 8th. B. Riley Financial reissued a “buy” rating and set a $75.00 price objective (up from $66.00) on shares of Applied Digital in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reduced their price objective on Applied Digital from $83.00 to $70.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 8th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have issued a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $62.25.

Applied Digital News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Applied Digital reported fiscal first-quarter revenue of $300.4 million, up 367.8% year over year, while its $0.01 per-share loss was significantly narrower than the $0.30 loss analysts expected. The strong growth highlights continued demand for its data-center infrastructure. Applied Digital Fiscal Q1 2027 Revenue Surges
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysts remain broadly constructive, with Applied Digital carrying a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating and an average price target of $62.25. However, targets vary widely, reflecting uncertainty over how quickly new AI facilities will generate profitable revenue. Applied Digital Analyst Ratings
• Negative Sentiment: Higher bond yields and renewed scrutiny of financing costs are weighing on data-center developers that borrow heavily to build facilities before receiving customer payments. Applied Digital’s debt-to-equity ratio of approximately 3.9 increases its sensitivity to tighter credit conditions. Rotation Out of Debt-Funded AI Builders
• Negative Sentiment: Investors are increasingly focused on cash burn and whether lenders will continue funding Applied Digital’s expanding construction pipeline. The concern is that additional debt or less favorable financing could pressure profitability and shareholder returns. Applied Digital Funding Risks
• Negative Sentiment: Director Richard Nottenburg sold 31,250 shares for approximately $682,500, reducing his holdings by 23.4%. Although one insider sale is not necessarily a signal of deteriorating fundamentals, it adds to near-term investor caution. SEC Insider Transaction Filing
• Negative Sentiment: An analyst lowered the company’s second-quarter EPS estimate, reinforcing concerns that construction spending, financing costs and ongoing losses may continue to weigh on earnings. Reduced Applied Digital EPS Estimate

Applied Digital Trading Down 11.5%

The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $26.11 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $32.27. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.46 billion, a PE ratio of -11.01 and a beta of 5.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.90, a quick ratio of 2.56 and a current ratio of 2.56.

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

Institutional Trading of Applied Digital

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. raised its position in shares of Applied Digital by 793.0% during the 3rd quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. now owns 6,117 shares of the company’s stock valued at $148,000 after purchasing an additional 5,432 shares during the period. Activest Wealth Management boosted its holdings in Applied Digital by 11.2% in the 3rd quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 14,455 shares of the company’s stock worth $352,000 after buying an additional 1,455 shares during the period. Krilogy Financial LLC boosted its holdings in Applied Digital by 49.0% in the 3rd quarter. Krilogy Financial LLC now owns 21,228 shares of the company’s stock worth $494,000 after buying an additional 6,985 shares during the period. Thor Investment Management Inc. OH ADV boosted its holdings in Applied Digital by 1.1% in the 3rd quarter. Thor Investment Management Inc. OH ADV now owns 282,257 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,879,000 after buying an additional 2,986 shares during the period. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in Applied Digital by 42.6% in the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,983 shares of the company’s stock worth $73,000 after buying an additional 891 shares in the last quarter. 65.67% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Applied Digital Company Profile

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

The company’s business has included hosting infrastructure for cryptocurrency-mining operations and, increasingly, developing facilities for artificial intelligence and high-performance computing workloads.