November 29, 2025 — Applied Digital Corporation (NASDAQ: APLD) is ending November with a burst of momentum. The AI data‑center developer’s stock has surged roughly 28% over the past week, powered by fresh headlines on massive North Dakota “AI Factory” projects, new funding, and a mix of institutional and insider activity that hit the tape today. [1]
APLD stock: volatile week ends near $27
Applied Digital shares closed around $27.10 on Friday, November 28, up roughly 8.6% on the day and capping a week‑long rally of about 28%, according to price data cited by Quiver Quantitative and multiple market‑data providers. [2]
Key snapshot:
- Latest close: ≈$27.10 (Nov 28, regular session)
- 52‑week range: about $3.31 – $40.20, underscoring extreme volatility [3]
- Market capitalization: roughly $7 billion as of November 29, 2025 [4]
- Beta: well above 3, meaning the stock typically moves much more than the broader market [5]
This week’s rebound follows a choppy November in which APLD sold off after announcing large new financings, then snapped back as investors focused on long‑term AI infrastructure demand and a string of positive project updates. [6]
What’s new today (Nov. 29, 2025)?
Several fresh items hit newswires and data platforms on November 29 that matter for Applied Digital shareholders:
- Macquarie funding and North Dakota AI Factory buildout highlighted
- Insider Monkey and Finviz published a feature on Applied Digital’s plan to draw $787.5 million from its up to $5 billion preferred equity facility with Macquarie Asset Management. [7]
- The article emphasizes that the capital will be used to accelerate construction at the Polaris Forge 1 and Polaris Forge 2 AI Factory campuses in North Dakota.
- Rockefeller Capital Management takes a new stake
- MarketBeat reported that Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. bought 30,088 APLD shares in Q2, worth about $303,000, according to its latest 13F filing. [8]
- QuiverQuant flags APLD as a top‑moving and heavily followed stock
- A new Quiver Quantitative “PriceTracker” note points out that APLD rose 28% this week and ranked among the most‑searched tickers on the platform. [9]
- The same report highlights substantial hedge‑fund buying and a wall of bullish analyst targets.
- TradingView surfaces new contract and insider‑purchase details
- A TradingView news brief recaps Applied Digital’s multi‑billion‑dollar long‑term contracts, including its 400 MW CoreWeave campus and a $5 billion, 200 MW lease with a U.S. investment‑grade hyperscaler at Polaris Forge 2. [10]
- It also notes that on November 28, company officer Zhang Jason Gechen acquired 109,119 shares, lifting his stake to more than 1.4 million shares, in a transaction tied to options and tax obligations. [11]
Collectively, today’s coverage reinforces a narrative that has been building for months: Applied Digital is betting big on being one of the fastest‑growing suppliers of AI data‑center capacity in North America—while investors debate how much risk comes with that growth.
Macquarie’s $787.5 million draw and $2.35 billion in notes: the funding backbone
The Macquarie funding featured in today’s articles is not new, but it’s central to understanding the stock’s rerating.
On November 12, Applied Digital announced that it expects to receive $787.5 million in additional equity funding from Macquarie Asset Management as part of a previously disclosed up to $5.0 billion perpetual preferred equity facility. [12]
According to the company:
- $450 million is earmarked for Polaris Forge 2, an AI Factory campus near Harwood, North Dakota, where 200 MW of critical IT capacity is already leased to a U.S. investment‑grade hyperscaler that also holds rights to another 800 MW. [13]
- $337.5 million is allocated to Polaris Forge 1 in Ellendale, North Dakota, subject to the successful closing of the company’s $2.35 billion senior secured notes offering. [14]
The senior notes, priced on November 13, carry a 9.25% coupon, mature in 2030 and were issued at 97% of face value. Proceeds are being used to help fund two data centers (100 MW and 150 MW) at the Polaris Forge 1 campus, repay an earlier facility with Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation, and cover reserves and transaction costs. [15]
For equity investors, this capital stack is a double‑edged sword:
- It reduces near‑term equity dilution by leaning on preferred equity and debt. [16]
- But it raises leverage and financing complexity, and requires flawless execution at the North Dakota campuses to service that debt.
Polaris Forge 1 hits 100 MW and the AI “factory” thesis gains proof
A key reason APLD’s rally has legs is that the company is not just announcing deals—it is actually turning steel into revenue‑generating power.
On November 24, Applied Digital announced that it has completed Phase II Ready‑for‑Service (RFS) at Polaris Forge 1, energizing the second 50 MW phase at its first building in Ellendale. This brings Building 1 to its full 100 MW critical IT load, the first of three contracted buildings at the 400 MW campus. [17]
Important details from the company’s release and subsequent coverage:
- Polaris Forge 1 is part of a 400 MW deployment fully contracted to CoreWeave under long‑term leases. [18]
- Applied Digital says the milestone demonstrates its ability to deliver high‑density AI infrastructure on schedule, a key differentiator in a market where power and capacity availability—not GPUs—are emerging as the main bottleneck. [19]
- The company links this progress to a broader North Dakota pipeline that now represents around $16 billion in contracted revenue across Polaris Forge 1 and 2, thanks to the CoreWeave leases and the new $5 billion hyperscaler contract. [20]
MarketBeat’s deep dive yesterday framed the RFS announcement as the moment one of APLD’s largest capital projects started to behave like a cash‑generating asset, helping to explain why the stock spiked double digits on November 24. [21]
Massive long‑term AI leases: $7 billion with CoreWeave, $5 billion at Polaris Forge 2
Today’s TradingView and Insider Monkey pieces both circle back to a simple but critical point: Applied Digital’s growth is anchored by multi‑year, multi‑billion‑dollar leases with AI‑focused customers.
Key commitments:
- Two 15‑year leases with CoreWeave (backed by Nvidia) are expected to generate about $7 billion in revenue over the term, according to a June Reuters report. [22]
- The October 22 press release unveiled a ~$5 billion, 15‑year lease at Polaris Forge 2 with a U.S. investment‑grade hyperscaler, covering 200 MW of critical IT capacity and granting the tenant a first right of refusal on another 800 MW. [23]
- Together, these deals bring Applied Digital’s leased capacity in North Dakota to 600 MW across Polaris Forge 1 and 2. [24]
This model effectively positions APLD as a “picks‑and‑shovels” AI landlord: it builds and operates highly specialized data centers, then locks in multi‑year lease payments that can be modeled more like infrastructure or real estate income than volatile crypto hosting revenue — the business it’s trying to leave behind. [25]
Institutions pile in as Rockefeller discloses a new position
Today’s MarketBeat alert about Rockefeller Capital Management’s new stake adds another name to a growing list of institutions backing Applied Digital’s pivot. The firm acquired 30,088 shares in Q2, valued at roughly $303,000, and MarketBeat notes that around two‑thirds of APLD’s float (≈65%+) is now held by hedge funds and other institutions. [26]
The QuiverQuant report published this afternoon offers a broader look at institutional flows:
- 242 institutional investors increased their APLD holdings, while 157 reduced positions in their most recent quarter. [27]
- Large recent buyers include D.E. Shaw, Jane Street, Price T. Rowe Associates, BlackRock and Vanguard, each adding multi‑million‑share positions during Q3 2025. [28]
Rising institutional ownership can bolster liquidity and signal long‑term confidence, but it can also amplify volatility if sentiment suddenly shifts—as AI‑themed stocks have demonstrated repeatedly this year.
Insider activity: mostly selling, but a notable insider buy surfaces
QuiverQuant’s data shows that over the past six months insiders executed 19 open‑market trades, all of them sales, led by CEO Wes Cummins, CFO Saidal Mohmand, and several directors. [29]
However, today’s TradingView note highlights one countervailing transaction:
- On November 28, officer Zhang Jason Gechen acquired 109,119 shares, increasing his total holdings to about 1.41 million shares. The purchase was linked to option exercises and tax obligations but still leaves him with a sizable stake. [30]
For investors, the mixed insider picture reinforces that APLD is in a high‑beta, high‑expectation phase: some executives are locking in gains after a massive rally, while others are still building positions or maintaining large exposures.
Earnings snapshot: hyper‑growth with steep losses
Fundamentals remain a blend of rapid growth and heavy investment:
- For Q1 fiscal 2026, reported October 9, Applied Digital posted EPS of –$0.03, beating the consensus estimate of –$0.11. [31]
- Revenue jumped 84.3% year‑over‑year to $64.22 million, topping expectations of $52.25 million, driven largely by AI data‑center lease ramp‑up. [32]
- Over the last twelve months, the company has generated roughly $174 million in revenue but remains deeply unprofitable, with net losses above $230 million and trailing EPS around –$1.10 to –$1.15 per share. [33]
Analysts following the name expect losses to narrow significantly next year, with MarketBeat data pointing to earnings improving from about –$0.96 to –$0.23 per share as new AI infrastructure comes online. [34]
Analyst sentiment: “Strong Buy” consensus, aggressive price targets
Both QuiverQuant’s roundup and external stock‑analysis sites indicate that Wall Street remains broadly bullish on APLD, even after its triple‑digit year‑to‑date rally:
- At least 9–11 firms currently rate the stock a Buy or equivalent, with no major sell ratings in the latest QuiverQuant tally. [35]
- Recent price‑target moves include Needham raising its target to $41, with other firms such as Craig‑Hallum, Lake Street, Northland and HC Wainwright clustering between the high‑30s and low‑40s. [36]
- StockAnalysis and MarketBeat list an average 12‑month target in the high‑20s to mid‑30s, implying modest upside to current levels but with a “Strong Buy” or “Moderate Buy” consensus. [37]
That bullishness, combined with a sky‑high beta, helps explain why APLD can swing double digits on days when news hits about its financing or AI campus timelines.
Key risks investors are watching
Despite the positive headlines, today’s coverage and recent filings highlight several ongoing risks:
- Execution risk: APLD must complete and ramp hundreds of megawatts of high‑density capacity on tight schedules at Polaris Forge 1 and 2. Any construction or power‑supply delays could hurt cash flow and customer relationships. [38]
- Leverage and financing risk: The combination of $2.35 billion in senior notes and multi‑hundred‑million‑dollar preferred equity draws adds significant fixed obligations and dependence on credit markets. [39]
- Customer concentration: A large share of future revenue is tied to a small number of hyperscale customers like CoreWeave and the unnamed investment‑grade hyperscaler. [40]
- Valuation and volatility: After a multi‑hundred‑percent run in 2025, the stock’s valuation and ultra‑high beta leave it exposed to sharp corrections if AI sentiment cools or if execution stumbles. [41]
These are the same risk factors the company emphasizes in its press releases and SEC filings, underscoring that the story is not just about growth, but about how that growth is financed and delivered. [42]
What today’s news means for Applied Digital stock
Putting it all together, the November 29 news flow paints a consistent picture:
- Strategic, long‑dated AI leases and fresh capital continue to transform Applied Digital from a crypto‑hosting story into an AI infrastructure landlord with multi‑billion‑dollar, multi‑year revenue visibility. [43]
- Institutional interest is broadening, as seen in Rockefeller’s new stake and the influx of positions from quant, hedge‑fund and asset‑management firms. [44]
- Insider selling has been heavy, but the latest insider purchase and ongoing large insider holdings suggest company leadership is still highly exposed to the stock’s future, for better or worse. [45]
- The stock remains high‑risk, high‑reward: unprofitable, heavily financed, but with a pipeline that—if executed—could support the kind of cash flows many AI‑infrastructure investors are hunting for.
As always, this article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial advice. Anyone considering APLD should evaluate their own risk tolerance, time horizon, and portfolio objectives, and should review the company’s official filings and disclosures before making investment decisions.
References
1. www.quiverquant.com, 2. www.quiverquant.com, 3. stockanalysis.com, 4. stockanalysis.com, 5. stockanalysis.com, 6. stockanalysis.com, 7. www.insidermonkey.com, 8. www.marketbeat.com, 9. www.quiverquant.com, 10. www.tradingview.com, 11. www.tradingview.com, 12. ir.applieddigital.com, 13. ir.applieddigital.com, 14. ir.applieddigital.com, 15. ir.applieddigital.com, 16. ir.applieddigital.com, 17. ir.applieddigital.com, 18. ir.applieddigital.com, 19. www.marketbeat.com, 20. ir.applieddigital.com, 21. www.marketbeat.com, 22. www.reuters.com, 23. ir.applieddigital.com, 24. ir.applieddigital.com, 25. stockanalysis.com, 26. www.marketbeat.com, 27. www.quiverquant.com, 28. www.quiverquant.com, 29. www.quiverquant.com, 30. www.tradingview.com, 31. www.marketbeat.com, 32. www.marketbeat.com, 33. www.marketbeat.com, 34. www.marketbeat.com, 35. www.quiverquant.com, 36. www.quiverquant.com, 37. stockanalysis.com, 38. ir.applieddigital.com, 39. ir.applieddigital.com, 40. ir.applieddigital.com, 41. stockanalysis.com, 42. ir.applieddigital.com, 43. ir.applieddigital.com, 44. www.marketbeat.com, 45. www.quiverquant.com
