CRWV vs APLD Stock Comparison: AI Score, Valuation, Performance and Upside
CoreWeave is generally evaluated as the scaled, first-mover leader in GPU cloud infrastructure with a massive contracted backlog, while Applied Digital is viewed as an earlier-stage, higher-risk data center developer pivoting from crypto hosting into AI hosting. The comparison typically comes down to backlog quality and scale versus a smaller, more speculative growth trajectory.
This comparison is best used to weigh a large, already-scaled AI cloud infrastructure leader against an earlier-stage data center developer offering more speculative upside tied to its AI hosting pivot.
APLD holds the edge across 3 of 5 key metrics in this comparison. APLD has delivered stronger 1-year price return (+52.65% vs -18.06%), though CRWV has the better forward P/E setup (-43.23x vs -101.36x for APLD). On fundamentals, APLD is growing revenue faster (406.60%), while CRWV maintains the higher operating margin (-1.90%) — a classic growth-versus-profitability split. Analyst consensus implies meaningfully more upside for APLD (+192.93%) than for CRWV (+71.50%).
- Want exposure to the largest pure-play GPU cloud infrastructure provider
- Are comfortable with heavy debt-financed capital spending
- Believe contracted AI compute backlogs will continue converting to revenue
- Accept customer concentration risk among top AI labs
- Want higher-risk, higher-upside exposure to an early-stage AI data center pivot
- Believe the company's power and land positions will attract more AI hosting tenants
- Are comfortable with smaller scale and financing uncertainty
- Want a lower entry valuation than the largest AI infrastructure names
| Metric | CRWV | APLD |
|---|---|---|
| AI score | 48.4 | 53.4 |
| AI rank | #547 | #284 |
| Latest close | $84.23 | $25.34 |
| 1M return | +38.49% | +9.13% |
| 6M return | -13.73% | -11.55% |
| 1Y return | -18.06% | +52.65% |
How much would $10,000 be worth today if invested at the start of each period, with all dividends reinvested?
| Period | CRWV | APLD |
|---|---|---|
| 1Y ago | $8.19K (-18.1%) started 2025-08-28 | $15.27K (+52.7%) started 2025-08-28 |
| 5Y ago | $21.06K (+110.6%) started 2025-03-28 | $52.25K (+422.5%) started 2022-04-13 |
| 10Y ago | $21.06K (+110.6%) started 2025-03-28 | $52.25K (+422.5%) started 2022-04-13 |
Hypothetical — past performance does not guarantee future results.
| Metric | CRWV | APLD |
|---|---|---|
| Market cap | $46.46B | $7.2B |
| Trailing P/E | N/A | N/A |
| Forward P/E | -43.23 | -101.36 |
| Price/Sales | 6.12 | 11.78 |
| EV/Revenue | 12.19 | 21.14 |
| Analyst target | $144.46 | $74.23 |
| Target upside | +71.50% | +192.93% |
| Metric | CRWV | APLD |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue growth | 112.50% | 406.60% |
| Earnings growth | N/A | N/A |
| EPS growth | N/A | N/A |
| FCF margin | -119.74% | -811.61% |
| Operating margin | -1.90% | -48.22% |
| Profit margin | -25.40% | -39.91% |
| ROIC proxy | -43.60% | -8.38% |
| Return on equity | -43.60% | -8.38% |
| Dividend yield | 0.00% | 0.00% |
| Beta | 3.31 | 5.77 |
| Debt/equity | 1027.33 | 136.23 |
| Current ratio | 0.46 | 4.01 |
| Quick ratio | 0.39 | 1.42 |
Lower drawdown and smaller single-period drops generally indicate a smoother ride, though they do not guarantee lower future risk.
| Period | Metric | CRWV | APLD |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1Y | Growth | -18.06% | +52.65% |
| CAGR | -18.07% | +52.69% | |
| Sharpe ratio | 0.22 | 0.87 | |
| Max drawdown | 57.49% | 53.23% | |
| Max daily drop | 18.51% | 17.52% | |
| Max wkly drop | 28.67% | 29.01% | |
| 5Y | Growth | +110.58% | +422.47% |
| CAGR | +69.06% | +45.92% | |
| Sharpe ratio | 0.97 | 0.88 | |
| Max drawdown | 66.87% | 81.89% | |
| Max daily drop | 20.83% | 52.55% | |
| Max wkly drop | 37.55% | 74.62% | |
| 10Y | Growth | +110.58% | +422.47% |
| CAGR | +69.06% | +45.92% | |
| Sharpe ratio | 0.97 | 0.88 | |
| Max drawdown | 66.87% | 81.89% | |
| Max daily drop | 20.83% | 52.55% | |
| Max wkly drop | 37.55% | 74.62% |
| Category | CRWV | APLD |
|---|---|---|
| Company | CoreWeave | Applied Digital |
| Sector | Cloud Infrastructure | Cloud Infrastructure |
| Industry | N/A | N/A |
| Core business | CoreWeave operates GPU-focused cloud infrastructure and data centers that provide compute capacity for AI training and inference workloads. | Applied Digital develops and operates data center campuses, increasingly repositioned toward high-performance computing and AI cloud hosting from its bitcoin mining hosting origins. |
| Investor focus | Investors focus on CoreWeave's massive contracted revenue backlog, capital spending intensity, debt load, and its reliance on Nvidia hardware allocation and partnership. | Investors watch Applied Digital's pivot from crypto-mining hosting to AI/HPC hosting, its lease agreements with AI compute tenants, and its capital structure as it funds large build-outs. |
- Large multi-year contracted revenue backlog with major AI labs
- Deep strategic relationship and investment from Nvidia
- First-mover scale advantage in GPU-specific cloud infrastructure
- Large land and power positions supporting future data center capacity
- Signed long-term hosting agreements with AI compute customers
- Optionality to convert existing infrastructure toward higher-value AI workloads
- Very high capital expenditure and debt financing needs
- Customer concentration among a small number of AI labs and hyperscalers
- Execution risk in building and powering data centers fast enough to meet demand
- Smaller scale and shorter track record in AI hosting versus larger peers
- Heavy reliance on external financing to fund data center build-outs
- Legacy crypto-mining hosting exposure still influencing revenue mix
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