IREN Surges 10.89% on $9.7B Microsoft AI Cloud Deal: Is This the New Benchmark for AI Infrastructure Stocks?

Summary
• IREN’s stock rockets 10.89% intraday to $73.89, hitting a 52-week high of $75.73
• $9.7B GPU cloud contract with Microsoft drives premarket frenzy and $5.8B Dell procurement deal
• Short-seller Jim Chanos warns of 'below cost-of-capital' returns, clashing with market euphoria
• Turnover surges to 23.2M shares, 9.14% of float, as options chain erupts with 20 active contracts

IREN’s meteoric 10.89% intraday rally has ignited a firestorm in the AI infrastructure sector. The stock’s surge follows a landmark $9.7 billion GPU cloud services deal with Microsoft, which grants access to 77,000 NVIDIA GB300 processors over five years. While bulls celebrate a strategic validation of IREN’s vertically integrated AI cloud platform, bears like Jim Chanos argue the contract’s financials are structurally unprofitable. With the stock trading near its 52-week high and options volatility spiking to 159%, the battle between optimism and skepticism is now playing out in real-time.

Microsoft AI Cloud Contract Ignites IREN's 10.89% Surge
IREN’s 10.89% intraday jump is directly attributable to its $9.7 billion GPU cloud services agreement with Microsoft, announced on November 3. The deal grants Microsoft access to NVIDIA GB300 processors at IREN’s 750MW Texas campus, with a 20% prepayment of $1.94 billion. The contract’s scale—$5.8 billion in equipment procurement from Dell and $9.7 billion in total value—positions IREN as a critical node in Microsoft’s AI infrastructure expansion. CEO Daniel Roberts emphasized the partnership’s strategic validation, while short-seller Jim Chanos countered that the project’s 7.7% ROIC and 10.2% IRR are below IREN’s cost of capital. The stock’s surge reflects market optimism about IREN’s role in the AI cloud boom, despite Chanos’s bearish critique.

Internet Services & Infrastructure Sector Mixed as Amazon Trails
The Internet Services & Infrastructure sector, led by Amazon (AMZN), posted a -0.022% intraday decline, contrasting IREN’s 10.89% surge. While IREN’s AI cloud deal with Microsoft highlights niche infrastructure demand, Amazon’s flat performance underscores broader sector fragmentation. Microsoft’s strategic push for AI dominance via IREN’s GPU capacity contrasts with Amazon’s slower AI infrastructure scaling. IREN’s 52-week high of $75.73 now positions it as a sector outlier, leveraging its vertically integrated AI cloud model against peers’ more diversified but less specialized offerings.

IREN20251114C71 & IREN20251114C70: High-Leverage Calls for AI Cloud Bull Play
• MACD: 4.47 (bullish divergence from signal line 4.89)
• RSI: 48.56 (neutral, but rising from 46.84 30D support)
• Bollinger Bands: Price at 70.74 (upper band), 61.71 (middle), 52.68 (lower)
• 200D MA: $20.09 (far below current price)

IREN’s technicals scream short-term bullish momentum. The stock is trading near its 52-week high of $75.73, with RSI and MACD suggesting upward continuation. The options chain reflects this optimism, with IREN20251114C71 and IREN20251114C70 emerging as top picks.

IREN20251114C71 (strike $71, exp 11/14):
• IV: 159.38% (high volatility)
• Leverage Ratio: 8.52% (moderate)
• Delta: 0.592 (moderate sensitivity)
• Theta: -0.5149 (rapid time decay)
• Gamma: 0.0202 (moderate sensitivity to price moves)
• Turnover: $1.13M (high liquidity)
• Payoff at 5% upside ($77.58): $6.58/share
• Key Stat: High IV reflects market anticipation of further moves.

IREN20251114C70 (strike $70, exp 11/14):
• IV: 152.91% (high volatility)
• Leverage Ratio: 8.33% (moderate)
• Delta: 0.614 (moderate sensitivity)
• Theta: -0.5002 (rapid time decay)
• Gamma: 0.0208 (moderate sensitivity to price moves)
• Turnover: $1.04M (high liquidity)
• Payoff at 5% upside ($77.58): $7.58/share
• Key Stat: High turnover ensures easy entry/exit.

Both contracts offer aggressive leverage for a 5% upside scenario, with IREN20251114C70 slightly edging out due to higher delta and turnover. Aggressive bulls should consider IREN20251114C70 into a break above $73.94 intraday high.

Backtest IREN Stock Performance
Here is the back-test you requested. Key performance highlights (2022-01-04 → 2025-11-05):• Total return of the strategy: ≈ 90% • Annualised return: ≈ 39% • Maximum draw-down: ≈ 63% • Average trade return: ≈ 3.2% (winners ≈ 17.0%, losers ≈ -14.6%) • Max holding days per trade: 5 (auto-filled as a practical exit rule because no specific close signal was given) Assumptions auto-filled 1. “11 % intraday surge” was approximated with “≥ 11 % change from the previous close” because intraday high/low data were not supplied. 2. Positions are opened at the next day’s close price (standard back-test convention for end-of-day signals). 3. No stop-loss or take-profit levels were specified; only the 5-day maximum holding period is in force. You can explore the full interactive report below.

IREN’s AI Cloud Momentum Unstoppable: Target $75.73 52W High as Sector Eyes Amazon’s Lead
IREN’s 10.89% surge on the Microsoft AI cloud deal signals a paradigm shift in infrastructure investing. While Jim Chanos’s bearish critique highlights structural risks, the stock’s technicals and options volatility suggest a continuation of the rally. With the 52-week high at $75.73 in sight and Amazon (AMZN, -0.022% intraday) lagging, IREN is now the sector’s breakout star. Investors should monitor the $73.94 intraday high as a critical level—break above it, and the $75.73 52W high becomes a viable target. For now, IREN20251114C70 offers the best leverage for a bullish breakout.