Story Stocks^®

CoreWeave (CRWV) is trading sharply lower after 4Q25 earnings, as investors key in on a big EPS miss, heavy CapEx, and soft 1Q26 guidance that overshadow triple-digit revenue growth and a massive backlog.

• CRWV posted an adjusted net loss of ($0.89) per share, with adjusted operating margin slipping to 6% as accelerated data center buildouts lifted cost of revenue, infrastructure spend, and interest expense.
• Revenue jumped 110% yr/yr to about $1.6 bln, slightly ahead of expectations, driven by strong demand from hyperscalers, AI natives, and enterprises, plus higher attach for storage, CPUs, and cloud tools.
• Revenue backlog reached $66.8 bln, up more than 4x yr/yr, with average contract duration stretching to roughly five years and about 42% of backlog expected to be recognized within two years.
• CapEx was $8.2 bln in Q4 and $14.9 bln for 2025, as CRWV pulled forward infrastructure to deploy tens of thousands of NVIDIA (NVDA) Grace Blackwell GPUs and prepare for Rubin, Vera, and Bluefield in 2026.
• For 2026, CRWV plans $30-$35 bln of CapEx, more than double 2025, to lift active power from 850 MW to over 1.7 GW, largely financed by delayed-draw, asset-level term loans tied to contracted demand.
• 1Q26 revenue guidance of $1.9-$2.0 bln is well below the roughly $2.29 bln consensus, reflecting capacity coming online late and a front-loaded $6-$7 bln CapEx program, while full-year revenue of $12-$13 bln (about 140% growth at the midpoint) is in line.

Briefing.com Analyst Insight

CRWV’s sell-off reflects a clash between stellar growth/backlog and near-term financial pressure: 110%+ revenue growth and a $66.8 bln backlog contrast with negative EPS, a 6% adjusted operating margin, and a weaker-than-hoped 1Q26 outlook. Management is clearly prioritizing scale over near-term profits, betting that mid-20s contribution margins on mature contracts and rising mix of higher-margin software and stack licensing will unlock strong profitability once this build cycle normalizes. The upside case rests on CRWV’s role as a pure-play NVDA-aligned AI cloud, with deep partnerships, sold-out 2026 capacity, and potential upside from licensing its cloud stack that is not in guidance. The downside centers on execution and capital intensity, with $30–$35 bln of 2026 CapEx and rising interest expense leaving little room for missteps.