The valuation anchor for neocloud providers like Nebius lies in cash flow predictability and long term utilization rates, rather than short term narrative shifts around balance sheet leverage. While the market initially panicked over credit default swap costs, the rapid pivot to viewing $775 million in debt as efficient capital highlights how heavily sentiment dominates high growth AI infrastructure stocks. Leverage becomes an advantage only if the borrowed capital directly accelerates top line growth through GPU cluster buildouts and active AI partnerships. Until these companies demonstrate consistent, positive free cash flow, their true valuation anchor will remain tied to revenue multiples and contract backlogs rather than traditional debt metrics.
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