Shares of Australian data center operator NextDC surged more than 42% Thursday after Goodman Group and U.S.-listed data center operator Digital Realty moved to acquire stakes of up to 9.9% in the company.
In a regulatory filing on the same day, NextDC said the two companies conducted an aftermarket bookbuild Wednesday, seeking shares at A$9.50 apiece.
NextDC's board called the move "opportunistic," noting that it came two weeks after the company disclosed a power supply delay at its M3 Melbourne data center and revised its fiscal 2027 guidance.
The company said it was not aware of the outcome of the share purchase. Goodman and Digital Realty told investors they had no current intention of making a takeover bid, but reserved the right to do so.
NextDC's rally came against a backdrop of weakness in U.S. data center stocks overnight. Shares of CoreWeave fell about 9%, while Iren dropped roughly 11.2% on Wednesday.
The sell-off followed sweeping Democratic victories in the U.S. midterm elections , which raised expectations of tighter scrutiny and potential restrictions on data center development that could slow the AI infrastructure buildout.
