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Applied Digital Corporation (APLD): AI and High-Performance Computing

We recently published a list of Complete List of All AI Companies Under $2 Billion Market Cap. In this article, we are going to take a look at where Applied Digital Corporation (NASDAQ:APLD) stands against other AI companies under $2 billion market cap.

It’s clear that AI holds immense promise but it comes with significant risks. Some of the concerns that the market has include overreliance on a few key players, shifts in demand toward smaller competitors, and the broader impact of AI-driven market trends on earnings and valuations. While AI offers opportunities, managing risks such as customer concentration, economic headwinds, and market volatility will be crucial for its sustainable growth and integration.

Navigating AI Expectations and Market Dynamics

On CNBC ‘Fast Money,’ a discussion between traders highlighted concerns about elevated expectations for AI, especially in the chip market, with NVDA as a prime example. Past patterns in the semiconductor giant’s stock suggest potential declines, with customer concentration being a significant risk. Some believe demand for high-end chips could shift to smaller semiconductor companies. They also discussed that broader market performance might improve as other sectors gain traction, especially during earnings season, which is expected to influence investor sentiment more than AI and GLP-1 trends.

They mentioned that the key risks for earnings include the strong U.S. dollar, rising rates, and policy uncertainties, which may impact large-cap companies. While recent PPI data offered some relief, the bond market remains firm, with 10-year yields approaching 5%. Expectations for CPI and PCE figures are mixed, with potential reacceleration seen as a headwind for markets in a higher rate environment. Earnings and economic data were considered critical factors to watch by the traders.

Our Methodology

For this article, we scoured our database as well as several ETFs and media reports to find all possible AI stocks under $2 billion. We then listed the stocks in ascending order of their market cap. We also added the hedge fund sentiment around each stock which was taken from Insider Monkey’s database of 900 hedge funds.

Why are we interested in the stocks that hedge funds pile into? The reason is simple: our research has shown that we can outperform the market by imitating the top stock picks of the best hedge funds. Our quarterly newsletter’s strategy selects 14 small-cap and large-cap stocks every quarter and has returned 275% since May 2014, beating its benchmark by 150 percentage points (see more details here).

An overhead view of a large-scale data center with rows of servers and blinking lights.

Applied Digital Corporation (NASDAQ:APLD)

Market Capitalization: $1.904 Billion

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 26

Applied Digital Corporation (NASDAQ:APLD) specializes in developing and operating next-generation data centers and cloud infrastructure. Its custom-designed facilities are built to optimize accelerated computing and provide secure, scalable digital hosting services, including CSaaS and GPU-as-a-Service. With extensive hyperscale experience and a strong power supply pipeline, Applied Digital focuses on supporting demanding AI/ML, blockchain, and high-performance computing (HPC) workloads, including AI factories.

In December 2024, Applied Digital reached an important milestone in its Ellendale, N.D., data center project by successfully energizing its main substation transformer. This step moves the facility closer to supporting advanced AI and high-performance computing. The milestone was celebrated with partners, including Montana-Dakota Utilities and the local community. Applied Digital also requested annexation to Ellendale to increase local revenue and services.

Analyst Darren Aftahi of Roth MKM keeps a positive outlook on Applied Digital (NASDAQ:APLD), which is based on the company’s financial restructuring, including revised depreciation schedules that are expected to improve AI Cloud segment profitability and refinancing of debt, positioning the company for growth. Aftahi also sees potential revenue growth from the expanding AI Cloud business and steady Bitcoin hosting revenues, with the broader industry, especially Microsoft’s investments in AI data centers, expected to drive increased demand. Aftahi maintains a Buy rating on the company stock with a $13 price target.

Overall, APLD ranks 1st on our list of the 59 AI companies under $2 billion market cap. While we acknowledge the potential of APLD as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns and doing so within a shorter time frame. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than APLD but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about the cheapest AI stock.

READ NEXT: 20 Best AI Stock To Buy Now and 30 Most Important AI Stocks According to BlackRock

Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.

AI, Tariffs, Nuclear Power: One Undervalued Stock Connects ALL the Dots (Before It Explodes!)

Artificial intelligence is the greatest investment opportunity of our lifetime. The time to invest in groundbreaking AI is now, and this stock is a steal!

AI is eating the world—and the machines behind it are ravenous.

Each ChatGPT query, each model update, each robotic breakthrough consumes massive amounts of energy. In fact, AI is already pushing global power grids to the brink.

Wall Street is pouring hundreds of billions into artificial intelligence—training smarter chatbots, automating industries, and building the digital future. But there’s one urgent question few are asking:

Where will all of that energy come from?

AI is the most electricity-hungry technology ever invented. Each data center powering large language models like ChatGPT consumes as much energy as a small city. And it’s about to get worse.

Even Sam Altman, the founder of OpenAI, issued a stark warning:

“The future of AI depends on an energy breakthrough.”

Elon Musk was even more blunt:

“AI will run out of electricity by next year.”

As the world chases faster, smarter machines, a hidden crisis is emerging behind the scenes. Power grids are strained. Electricity prices are rising. Utilities are scrambling to expand capacity.

And that’s where the real opportunity lies…

One little-known company—almost entirely overlooked by most AI investors—could be the ultimate backdoor play. It’s not a chipmaker. It’s not a cloud platform. But it might be the most important AI stock in the US owns critical energy infrastructure assets positioned to feed the coming AI energy spike.

As demand from AI data centers explodes, this company is gearing up to profit from the most valuable commodity in the digital age: electricity.

The “Toll Booth” Operator of the AI Energy Boom

  • It owns critical nuclear energy infrastructure assets, positioning it at the heart of America’s next-generation power strategy.
  • It’s one of the only global companies capable of executing large-scale, complex EPC (engineering, procurement, and construction) projects across oil, gas, renewable fuels, and industrial infrastructure.
  • It plays a pivotal role in U.S. LNG exportation—a sector about to explode under President Trump’s renewed “America First” energy doctrine.

Trump has made it clear: Europe and U.S. allies must buy American LNG.

And our company sits in the toll booth—collecting fees on every drop exported.

But that’s not all…

As Trump’s proposed tariffs push American manufacturers to bring their operations back home, this company will be first in line to rebuild, retrofit, and reengineer those facilities.

AI. Energy. Tariffs. Onshoring. This One Company Ties It All Together.

While the world is distracted by flashy AI tickers, a few smart investors are quietly scooping up shares of the one company powering it all from behind the scenes.

AI needs energy. Energy needs infrastructure.

And infrastructure needs a builder with experience, scale, and execution.

This company has its finger in every pie—and Wall Street is just starting to notice.

Wall Street is noticing this company also because it is quietly riding all of these tailwinds—without the sky-high valuation.

While most energy and utility firms are buried under mountains of debt and coughing up hefty interest payments just to appease bondholders…

This company is completely debt-free.

In fact, it’s sitting on a war chest of cash—equal to nearly one-third of its entire market cap.

It also owns a huge equity stake in another red-hot AI play, giving investors indirect exposure to multiple AI growth engines without paying a premium.

And here’s what the smart money has started whispering…

The Hedge Fund Secret That’s Starting to Leak Out

This stock is so off-the-radar, so absurdly undervalued, that some of the most secretive hedge fund managers in the world have begun pitching it at closed-door investment summits.

They’re sharing it quietly, away from the cameras, to rooms full of ultra-wealthy clients.

Why? Because excluding cash and investments, this company is trading at less than 7 times earnings.

And that’s for a business tied to:

  • The AI infrastructure supercycle
  • The onshoring boom driven by Trump-era tariffs
  • A surge in U.S. LNG exports
  • And a unique footprint in nuclear energy—the future of clean, reliable power

You simply won’t find another AI and energy stock this cheap… with this much upside.

This isn’t a hype stock. It’s not riding on hope.

It’s delivering real cash flows, owns critical infrastructure, and holds stakes in other major growth stories.

This is your chance to get in before the rockets take off!

Disruption is the New Name of the Game: Let’s face it, complacency breeds stagnation.

AI is the ultimate disruptor, and it’s shaking the foundations of traditional industries.

The companies that embrace AI will thrive, while the dinosaurs clinging to outdated methods will be left in the dust.

As an investor, you want to be on the side of the winners, and AI is the winning ticket.

The Talent Pool is Overflowing: The world’s brightest minds are flocking to AI.

From computer scientists to mathematicians, the next generation of innovators is pouring its energy into this field.

This influx of talent guarantees a constant stream of groundbreaking ideas and rapid advancements.

By investing in AI, you’re essentially backing the future.

The future is powered by artificial intelligence, and the time to invest is NOW.

Don’t be a spectator in this technological revolution.

Dive into the AI gold rush and watch your portfolio soar alongside the brightest minds of our generation.

This isn’t just about making money – it’s about being part of the future.

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A New Dawn is Coming to U.S. Stocks

I work for one of the largest independent financial publishers in the world – representing over 1 million people in 148 countries.

We’re independently funding today’s broadcast to address something on the mind of every investor in America right now…

Should I put my money in Artificial Intelligence?

Here to answer that for us… and give away his No. 1 free AI recommendation… is 50-year Wall Street titan, Marc Chaikin.

Marc’s been a trader, stockbroker, and analyst. He was the head of the options department at a major brokerage firm and is a sought-after expert for CNBC, Fox Business, Barron’s, and Yahoo! Finance…

But what Marc’s most known for is his award-winning stock-rating system. Which determines whether a stock could shoot sky-high in the next three to six months… or come crashing down.

That’s why Marc’s work appears in every Bloomberg and Reuters terminal on the planet…

And is still used by hundreds of banks, hedge funds, and brokerages to track the billions of dollars flowing in and out of stocks each day.

He’s used this system to survive nine bear markets… create three new indices for the Nasdaq… and even predict the brutal bear market of 2022, 90 days in advance.

Click to continue reading…