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    Should AI Data Center Expansion Require Action From Digital Realty Trust (DLR) Investors?

    Simply Wall St·10/04/2026 03:23:32
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    • Digital Realty Trust reported that AI firm Blackfuel selected its Barcelona BCN1 facility for a liquid cooled AMD and Dell powered inference platform, and the business also outlined a new cable landing station at LAX12 in Los Angeles with Assured Communications that is planned to support subsea cables from 2028.
    • By tying Blackfuel’s inference platform directly into ServiceFabric and adding a Los Angeles cable landing station, Digital Realty Trust is positioning AI workloads and subsea traffic closer to customer data. This move aligns with demand for low latency infrastructure and more integrated connectivity inside its existing footprint.
    • We will now look at how Digital Realty Trust's ServiceFabric linked AI deployment factors into the broader investment narrative around its data centers.

    Compare how Digital Realty Trust’s AI focused infrastructure move stacks up against other potential beneficiaries by scanning our curated list of 90 AI infrastructure stocks in one place.

    Digital Realty Trust Investment Narrative Recap

    To own Digital Realty Trust, you need to believe its large development pipeline and global PlatformDIGITAL footprint convert into durable demand from AI, cloud and enterprise tenants. The Blackfuel and LAX12 updates speak directly to that belief by showing the firm still adding use cases and connectivity around AI driven, latency sensitive workloads.

    The near term swing factor remains how efficiently Digital Realty Trust funds and leases its 1.4 GW pipeline while dealing with weaker recent profitability and interest coverage. The biggest risk is spending heavily into pockets of oversupply or more expensive capital, in which case headline AI interest, including Blackfuel, may not offset pressure on cash returns.

    The Blackfuel deployment into the Barcelona BCN1 site, tied into ServiceFabric, is the clearest link to the current AI narrative. It puts liquid cooled, AMD GPU based inference capacity directly inside Digital Realty Trust’s interconnection fabric. This matters for the 0 to 1 MW segment where analysts already see AI related bookings playing a meaningful role.

    What stands out operationally is that Blackfuel can use ServiceFabric to reach more than 800 Digital Realty and third party locations without customers shifting large data sets across the public internet. That fits neatly beside existing catalysts such as the US$1.9b backlog and 1.4 GW development slate, while still sharing the same risks around execution, power delivery and external funding needs.

    What The Current AI Buildout Implies For Digital Realty Trust’s Numbers

    Digital Realty Trust's narrative projects US$9.7b revenue and US$1.4b earnings by 2029. This assumes 12.7% yearly revenue growth and an earnings increase of about US$642m from US$758.3m today.

    Uncover why Digital Realty Trust's fair value indicates a 25% potential upside to its current price, which could narrow quickly.

    NYSE:DLR 1-Year Stock Price Chart
    NYSE:DLR 1-Year Stock Price Chart

    Exploring Other Perspectives

    The three fair value estimates from the Simply Wall St Community cluster between about US$223 and US$303 per share, so opinions already span a wide gap before factoring in Digital Realty Trust’s Blackfuel and LAX12 updates. You can weigh this spread against risks around the 1.4 GW buildout and funding needs, and then explore several contrasting viewpoints.

    Explore 2 other Digital Realty Trust fair value estimates, including one that suggests potential upside of up to 70% from the current price.

    Decide For Yourself

    Disagree with existing narratives? Extraordinary investment returns rarely come from following the herd, so go with your instincts.

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    This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.