Data centers are popping up across the country to handle AI demand. Which of these two stocks has greater upside?As the demand for artificial intelligence (AI) compute has increased exponentially, so has the need for massive data centers to process all that data at high speeds. It has led to a boom in not just the chips and AI infrastructure that processes that data, but also in the construction and development of actual data centers.Applied Digital (APLD 7.90%) and Riot Platforms (RIOT 3.33%) are both data ...

Core Insights - Riot Platforms, Inc. is expected to report a quarterly loss of $0.22 per share with projected revenue of $158 million, making this earnings release significant for investors [1][6] - Despite the anticipated revenue increase, there is a consensus of a year-over-year decline in earnings, which will impact the stock's short-term price movement [2][6] Financial Ratios - The company's price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio is approximately 34.33, indicating high investor expectations for future growth [3][6] - The price-to-sales ratio stands at about 9.46, reflecting the market's valuation of its revenue [3][6] - The enterprise value to sales ratio is around 10.31, while the enterprise value to operating cash flow ratio is negative at approximately -11.62, indicating potential challenges in cash flow generation [4][6] Debt and Liquidity - Riot's debt-to-equity ratio is approximately 0.25, suggesting a relatively low level of debt compared to equity, indicating less reliance on debt financing [5][6] - The current ratio is about 1.47, showing the company's ability to cover its short-term liabilities with its short-term assets, providing a mixed picture of financial health [5][6]

CASTLE ROCK, Colo., Feb. 20, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Riot Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ: RIOT) (“Riot” or “the Company”), a Bitcoin-driven industry leader in the development of large-scale data centers and bitcoin mining applications, announced today that it has scheduled its fourth quarter and year-end 2025 earnings conference call for Monday, March 2, 2026, at 4:30 P.M. EST. This conference call will be available through an audio-only webcast. Please use this link here to register. Participants who choose to d ...

Riot Platforms (NASDAQ: RIOT) stock closed Wednesday almost 6% higher in value, and, somewhat atypically, this wasn't due to the price movement of its favored asset, Bitcoin. Rather, investors were encouraged by the latest action of a high-profile shareholder in the crypto mining company. The company is a laggard, says activist Before market open, that shareholder -- activist investor Starboard Value -- sent a missive to Riot's CEO, Jason Les, and its chairman of the board of directors, Benjamin Yi. With ...

Group 1 - Riot Platforms (RIOT.US) shares rose over 5%, reaching $15.4 [1] - Activist investor Starboard Value is urging Riot Platforms to accelerate its transition to artificial intelligence data centers [1] - The company is positioned favorably to capitalize on the growing demand for artificial intelligence infrastructure [1]

Activist investor Starboard Value published a letter to Riot Platforms (NASDAQ: RIOT) leadership on Wednesday detailing a strategic transition that could value shares between $23.55 and $52.60. The firm argues the company can unlock significant value by shifting its power capacity focus from bitcoin mining to AI/HPC. Starboard noted that Riot has underperformed AI/HPC peers such as TeraWulf (NASDAQ: WULF), Core Scientific (NASDAQ: CORZ), Hut 8 (NASDAQ: HUT), and Cipher Mining (NASDAQ: CIFR) in share pric ...

Core Viewpoint - Activist investor Starboard Value is urging Riot Platforms to accelerate its AI data center initiatives, highlighting the company's potential to benefit from the increasing demand for artificial intelligence infrastructure [1]. Group 1: Company Positioning - Riot Platforms is positioned to leverage its substantial power capacity for AI computing as the profitability of bitcoin mining remains unstable [1]. - Starboard Value owns approximately 12.7 million shares of Riot and emphasizes that Riot's Texas sites, Corsicana and Rockdale, can provide about 1.7 gigawatts of power suitable for AI data center operations [1]. Group 2: Market Dynamics - The letter from Starboard indicates a trend among cryptocurrency miners to pivot towards AI and high-performance computing (HPC) as a response to the volatile nature of bitcoin mining profits [1]. - Starboard notes that AI and HPC companies are increasingly looking to cryptocurrency miners for immediate power capacity for their data centers [1]. Group 3: Strategic Recommendations - Starboard advises Riot to focus on securing high-quality, investment-grade tenants, such as hyperscalers, rather than merely pursuing the highest lease rates [1]. - The recent agreement between Riot and Advanced Micro Devices is viewed as a positive development, although it is characterized as a minor proof-of-concept deal [1].

据 TheEnergyMag 报道，激进投资者 Starboard Value 正敦促 Riot Platforms 加快从比特币挖矿向 AI 数据 中心和高性能计算（HPC）转型。Starboard 在致 Riot 董事会的信中指出，Riot 在德克萨斯州的 Corsicana 和 Rockdale 拥有约 1.7 吉瓦的电力容量，若能像同行一样将这些资源货币化用于 AI/HPC，预 计每年可产生超过 16 亿美元的 EBITDA。 （来源：吴说） ...

Core Insights - Riot Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:RIOT) is recognized as one of the best Bitcoin and blockchain stocks to invest in [1][2] Group 1: Analyst Ratings and Price Targets - Cantor Fitzgerald maintained an Overweight rating for Riot Platforms and increased its price target from $25 to $31, citing the company's land acquisition at Rockdale and a data center lease with AMD [3] - Keefe Bruyette reiterated its Outperform rating and raised its price target from $16 to $23, highlighting the long-term income visibility from the 10-year AMD lease, which secures approximately 21% of Rockdale's total capacity [4] Group 2: Financial Transactions and Performance - Riot Platforms purchased 200 acres at its Rockdale site for $96 million, funded by the sale of about 1,080 bitcoin [5] - The company secured a data center lease with AMD for an initial deployment of 25 MW starting in January 2026 [5] - As of February 11, 2026, the stock has increased by 4.52% year-to-date [5] Group 3: Business Overview - Riot Platforms is primarily engaged in bitcoin mining and provides specialized machines for cryptocurrency mining [5] - The company has made investments in Tess, Coinsquare, and Verady [5]

Core Viewpoint - The market anticipates Riot Platforms, Inc. (RIOT) will report a year-over-year decline in earnings despite higher revenues for the quarter ending December 2025, with actual results being crucial for stock price movement [1][2]. Earnings Expectations - Riot Platforms is expected to report a quarterly loss of $0.22 per share, reflecting a year-over-year change of -150% [3]. - Revenues are projected to be $157.36 million, which is an increase of 10.4% compared to the same quarter last year [3]. Estimate Revisions - The consensus EPS estimate has remained unchanged over the last 30 days, indicating a stable outlook from covering analysts [4]. - The Most Accurate Estimate for Riot Platforms is lower than the Zacks Consensus Estimate, resulting in an Earnings ESP of -12.36%, suggesting a bearish sentiment among analysts [11]. Earnings Surprise History - In the last reported quarter, Riot Platforms was expected to post a loss of $0.19 per share but instead reported earnings of $0.26, resulting in a surprise of +236.84% [12]. - Over the past four quarters, the company has beaten consensus EPS estimates three times [13]. Industry Comparison - In contrast, Moody's (MCO) is expected to report earnings of $3.46 per share for the same quarter, indicating a year-over-year change of +32.1%, with revenues expected to reach $1.88 billion, up 12.2% from the previous year [17][18]. - Moody's has a higher Most Accurate Estimate leading to an Earnings ESP of +0.83% and a Zacks Rank of 2 (Buy), suggesting a strong likelihood of beating the consensus EPS estimate [18][19].