Applied Digital stock climbs 16% as AI demand fuels data center growth

Applied Digital shares jumped 16% on Friday after the company posted strong first-quarter revenue that was boosted by artificial intelligence data center demand, putting the stock up more than 350% for the year.

Here’s how the company did compared to LSEG estimates:

• Loss per share: Loss of 7 cents vs. a loss of 13 cents expected
• Revenue: $64.2 million vs. $50 million expected

First quarter revenue of $64.2 million was up 84% from a year ago, when it reported $34.85 million in revenue.

The data center company reported earnings after the bell on Thursday.

During the quarter, Applied Digital built on its $7 billion lease agreement with CoreWeave that was announced in June for another 150 megawatts at the firm’s Polaris Forge 1 campus in North Dakota. The additional capacity brings the anticipated contracted lease revenue for the project up to $11 billion.

“With hyperscalers expected to invest approximately $350 billion into AI deployment this year, we believe we are in a prime position to serve as the modern-day picks and shovels of the intelligence era,” CEO Wes Cummins said in a release.

The new 150 MW building will join two other data cell blocks, each hosting 100 MW and 150 MW. The company noted that one building is nearly complete and construction will begin on the other.

Applied Digital also secured funding from Macquarie Equipment Capital for a second campus in North Dakota, dubbed Polaris Forge 2. The estimated $3 billion factory will hold two 150 MW buildings, bringing the total leased capacity to 600 MW across both campuses.

An initial 200 MW of power is expected to come online in 2026 and reach full capacity in 2027, the company said.

The company had a net loss of $18.5 million in the first quarter, a loss of 7 cents per share. A year ago, the company posted a net loss of $4.29 million, a loss of 3 cents per share.

Analysts polled by LSEG expect a loss of 15 cents per share for the second quarter on revenue of $76 million.