Stock Performance: Applied Digital Corporation (NASDAQ: APLD) has seen a 114% increase in stock value year-to-date, driven by rising demand for artificial intelligence (AI) and high-performance computing (HPC).
New Project Announcement: The company announced plans for a $3 billion AI Factory called Polaris Forge 2 in North Dakota, set to begin construction in September 2025, which led to a 16% stock rally.
Current Operations and Expansion: APLD operates data centers in North Dakota with a total capacity of approximately 286 MW and is also constructing Polaris Forge 1, a 400 MW HPC campus expected to launch in 2025.
Analyst Insights: Analyst George Sutton raised APLD's price target from $12 to $23, suggesting that the market has not fully recognized the company's growth potential and project pipeline, while noting the stock's high volatility.
APLD
$22.98+Infinity%1D
Analyst Views on APLD
Wall Street analysts forecast APLD stock price to rise over the next 12 months. According to Wall Street analysts, the average 1-year price target for APLD is 42.78 USD with a low forecast of 35.00 USD and a high forecast of 56.00 USD. However, analyst price targets are subjective and often lag stock prices, so investors should focus on the objective reasons behind analyst rating changes, which better reflect the company's fundamentals.
10 Analyst Rating
Wall Street analysts forecast APLD stock price to rise over the next 12 months. According to Wall Street analysts, the average 1-year price target for APLD is 42.78 USD with a low forecast of 35.00 USD and a high forecast of 56.00 USD. However, analyst price targets are subjective and often lag stock prices, so investors should focus on the objective reasons behind analyst rating changes, which better reflect the company's fundamentals.
10 Buy
0 Hold
0 Sell
Strong Buy
Current: 27.860
Low
35.00
Averages
42.78
High
56.00
Current: 27.860
Low
35.00
Averages
42.78
High
56.00
Craig-Hallum
Aaron Spychalla
Hold -> Buy
upgrade
$7
2025-11-05
Reason
Craig-Hallum
Aaron Spychalla
Price Target
$7
2025-11-05
upgrade
Hold -> Buy
Reason
As previously reported, Craig-Hallum analyst Aaron Spychalla upgraded Babcock & Wilcox (BW) to Buy from Hold with a $7 price target, up from $1.50. The firm notes Babcock & Wilcox reported mixed Q3 results on continued growth in the high-margin Parts & Services business from baseload power generation demand, with largely in line 2026 EBITDA guidance calling for about 80% growth as work ramps on the $246M coal-togas conversion project in Indiana. More noteworthy was the signing of a limited notice to proceed on a $1.5B-plus contract with Applied Digital (APLD) for 1 gigawatt of natural gas power utilizing BW's boilers and associated steam turbines for an Applied Digital AI Factory. Though still subject to a final notice to proceed, this is obviously a substantial development for a $600M business, and Craig-Hallum thinks shows the potential for BW to help bring baseload power generation online quicker, alleviating a key bottleneck in the market currently,
Craig-Hallum
Buy
upgrade
$37 -> $39
2025-10-23
Reason
Craig-Hallum
Price Target
$37 -> $39
2025-10-23
upgrade
Buy
Reason
Craig-Hallum raised the firm's price target on Applied Digital to $39 from $37 and keeps a Buy rating on the shares following their announcement of a $5B dollar lease at Polaris Forge 2. The firm notes that although the tenant has yet to be named, the release identifies it as an investment grade hyperscaler which limits the potential tenants to only a few and means financing should come at favorable terms. Craig-Hallum is encouraged to see that the lease comes with a ROFR for the additional 800 MW at the Harwood site and believes Applied Digital is successfully turning North Dakota into a data center hub with a path to significantly more signed capacity in the future. The firm views the weakness in the stock as an opportunity.
B. Riley
Buy
maintain
$23 -> $47
2025-10-22
Reason
B. Riley
Price Target
$23 -> $47
2025-10-22
maintain
Buy
Reason
B. Riley raised the firm's price target on Applied Digital to $47 from $23 and keeps a Buy rating on the shares. Estimates and valuations for high performance computing-focused companies have been updated, lifting price targets by an average of 78% and 2026 forecasts by 5%, the analyst tells investors in a research note. Despite recent pullbacks, shares remain up sharply since midyear, supported by strong AI-related power and data center demand, with new deals, such as Google and Anthropic's reported cloud partnership, potentially adding further upside, the firm says.
Lucid Capital
Joe Flynn
initiated
$44
2025-10-14
Reason
Lucid Capital
Joe Flynn
Price Target
$44
2025-10-14
initiated
Reason
Lucid Capital analyst Joe Flynn initiated coverage of Applied Digital with a Buy rating and $44 price target. The firm launched coverage of five bitcoin mining to high performance compute companies "that are positioned to capitalize on power shortages and other related constraints." The recent $1 trillion of added spend remains underappreciated and creates "interesting supply/demand dynamics" for companies positioned with megawatts of available power and ability to scale up infrastructure on accelerated timelines, the analyst tells investors in a research note. Lucid views Core Scientific (CORZ) as the most undervalued name in the sector.
About APLD
Applied Digital Corporation is a designer, builder, and operator engineered data centers and colocation services for Artificial Intelligence (AI), cloud, networking, and blockchain workloads. The Company operates through two operating segments: the Data Center Hosting Business and the HPC Hosting Business. The Data Center Hosting Business operates data centers to provide energized space to crypto mining customers. Its custom-designed data centers allow customers to rent space based on their power requirements also it serves one crypto mining customer. The HPC Hosting Business designs, builds, and operates data centers which are designed to support high-compute applications using advanced technologies and infrastructures to provide services to customers. The Company builds over two HPC focused data center facilities to provide 100 megawatts (MW) and 150 MW. Its subsidiaries include APLD Rattlesnake Den I LLC, Applied Talent Resources LLC, Sai Computing LLC, and others.
About the author
Emily J. Thompson
Emily J. Thompson, a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) with 12 years in investment research, graduated with honors from the Wharton School. Specializing in industrial and technology stocks, she provides in-depth analysis for Intellectia’s earnings and market brief reports.
