IREN Limited (IREN) shares fell 11% on Friday, October 16, closing at $26.99. It was a rough session for holders, with the stock down $3.40 on the day as nearly 68 million shares traded.

The decline was part of a broader sell-off across AI infrastructure names. Reuters reported that expectations of higher US interest rates weighed on CoreWeave, Nebius and IREN alike. Investors are asking whether future AI revenue can cover the billions of dollars going into computing capacity, and borrowing costs and data center financing sit at the center of that debate. For capital-intensive operators that pay for data centers and GPUs long before the matching revenue arrives, rate expectations bear directly on how much expansion can be funded.

Reports of a significant new customer did not stop the slide, however. Barron's reported on October 12 that Anthropic had agreed to a multiyear cloud arrangement with I. Neither company has confirmed the deal publicly. IREN did previously disclose a contract with an unidentified frontier AI lab. The report reflects a wider industry pattern in which leading AI labs lock up multiyear computing capacity in advance, turning providers with power and data center capacity into strategic suppliers.

IREN already has established ties to Microsoft and Nvidia. Those include a reported $9.7 billion Microsoft cloud services agreement and a partnership covering the company's five-gigawatt pipeline.

What the Latest Results Show

IREN's fiscal 2026 revenue rose about 41% to $707 million. Within that, AI cloud revenue jumped from $16.4 million to $128.8 million, a sharp increase in the company's fastest-growing segment.

Despite the revenue growth, the company still posted a $702.6 million net loss for the year. Most of the loss came from non-cash impairment charges tied to retiring Bitcoin mining equipment. Non-cash charges reduce reported earnings without a corresponding cash outflow, which is why the composition of the loss matters as much as its size.

Management cited approximately $4 billion in contracted annualized run-rate revenue tied to 2026 capacity, with about $1 billion of that already in operation. The company noted that those figures are run rates rather than recognized annual revenue — a distinction that matters, since contracted capacity becomes reported revenue only as it comes online.

Financing has provided support on the funding side. IREN disclosed $2.8 billion in GPU financing in August, though its substantial capital needs keep the company sensitive to credit conditions.

Analyst Targets and Chart Levels

Analysts, for their part, remain constructive. The consensus rating on IREN is Buy, with an average 12-month price target of $77.81, approximately 188% above Friday's close. Individual analyst targets range from $37 to $139.

B. Riley kept its Buy rating in September but cut its price target from $96 to $91. JPMorgan upgraded IREN from Underweight to Overweight that same month.

The chart, meanwhile, looks weaker. IREN trades below both its 50-day and 200-day moving averages, and its 14-day relative strength index (RSI) fell to about 22, a level generally considered deeply oversold.

On the chart, support sits at $26.55, followed by $25. A break below $26.55 could open the door to $25, while reclaiming $30.39 would be an early sign that selling pressure is easing.

IREN's next earnings report is estimated for November 5, 2026. Investors will look for proof that contracted AI revenue is turning into operational progress, and whether the reported Anthropic arrangement is publicly confirmed is another item on that list. Until then, sector-wide rate expectations and the pace at which IREN's contracted pipeline converts into operating revenue remain the key items to watch.

This article originally appeared on CoinCentral.