$APLD s fiscal Q1 2027 headline growth is huge, but most of it is pass-through construction revenue.
The underlying rent business is now clearly profitable.
GAAP results are still deep in the red because of stock-based comp, interest, and mark-to-market losses, including a hit on their B&W
$BW position.
The numbers (quarter ended Aug 31, 2026)
•Revenue of $341.9M, up 322% year over year; net loss to common stockholders of $221.0M, or $0.76 per share (continuing ops). Including discontinued ops it was $237.1M, or $0.82.
•Adjusted EBITDA of $64.4M versus $0.5M a year earlier.
•Of the $262.6M in HPC hosting revenue, $65.8M was base rent, $183.5M was tenant fit-out services, and $13.3M was tenant recoveries. Fit-out costs ran about $151M, so that $183.5M carries a thin margin.
•Rent quality looks strong: Net Operating Income of $58.8M, an 89% margin.
•Backlog: about 1.41 GW leased across five campuses, worth roughly $36B over initial base terms or about $86B if all renewals are exercised.
•Execution: Polaris Forge 1 reached 250 MW live on October 1, and the company expects 300 MW across its North Dakota campuses by the end of calendar 2026.
What I'd flag as bearish or watch items
•Non-GAAP figures exclude ChronoScale, which the company owns about 96% of. ChronoScale had a $25.4M operating loss that disappears from the adjusted numbers.
•SBC is heavy. SG&A rose to $114.7M, driven by a $51.7M increase in stock-based compensation. There were also $99.4M in tax payments for vesting RSUs.
•The balance sheet is stretched. The company held $3.7B in cash against $6.4B in debt, spent about $2.07B on capex in one quarter, and paid $242.9M in cash interest.
•Relevant to BW:
APLD booked a $56.1M decline in the fair value of its B&W warrant and an $11.4M loss on its B&W common stock. That reflects B&W's share price drop during June–August.
New optionality
•Up to about 1 GW of potential power capacity in Finland.
•A PPA with Base Electron for an approximately 1,200 MW gas-fired plant in North Dakota. APLD holds about a 10% equity stake in Base Electron.
Overall, the long-term lease thesis is intact and gaining scale.
The open questions are dilution, leverage, and how much of the adjusted picture depends on carving out ChronoScale.
Sources: Applied Digital Reports Fiscal First Quarter 2027 Results