Applied Digital signed a $5 billion 15-year infrastructure lease with a U.S. hyperscaler.

Applied Digital Corporation (NASDAQ:APLD) has established itself as one of the 12 most promising blockchain and crypto mining stocks according to hedge funds. On October 22, 2025, the company finalized a massive $5 billion, 15-year lease with a U.S.-based hyperscaler, significantly strengthening its position in the AI infrastructure space. The lease deal, which covers 200 MW at Applied Digital's Polaris Forge 2 campus in North Dakota, boosted shares up 4% in premarket trading and expands the company's total leased capacity across its Polaris Forge 1 and 2 sites to 600 MW.

Prior to this major agreement, on October 2, 2025, Compass Point raised its price target on Applied Digital from $13 to $30 while reiterating its "Buy" rating. The investment firm's bullish outlook was grounded in the full leasing of Polaris Forge 1 to CoreWeave and robust prospects for a hyperscaler lease at Forge 2, which the company subsequently achieved with its $5 billion lease deal. Compass Point also highlighted Applied Digital's industry-leading, purpose-built AI data centers as a key competitive advantage in the accelerating AI infrastructure boom.

Applied Digital operates through its Data Center Hosting and HPC Hosting segments, focusing on designing, developing, and operating digital infrastructure solutions for high-performance computing (HPC), blockchain mining, and artificial intelligence customers in North America. The company's data centers are engineered for rack densities exceeding 120 kW, positioning it at a significant advantage as demand for advanced computing infrastructure continues to accelerate. These infrastructure capabilities directly support the company's expansion of leased capacity and its ability to secure long-term agreements with major hyperscalers.