Palantir stock bounces to snap 10-day losing streak, says it now lets customers pay with bitcoin

MW Palantir stock bounces to snap 10-day losing streak, says it now lets customers pay with bitcoin

By Emily Bary

Company beat first-quarter revenue expectations and gave better-than-expected forecast for current quarter

Palantir Technologies Inc. topped revenue expectations Tuesday morning while announcing that it might consider adding bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies to its balance sheet.

The data integration and software company reported a fiscal first-quarter net loss of $123 million, or 7 cents a share, compared with a loss of $54 million, or 10 cents a share, a year earlier. After adjusting for stock-based compensation, Palantir (PLTR) earned 4 cents a share, whereas it posted a 1-cent adjusted loss per share a year prior. The FactSet consensus was for 4 cents a share in adjusted EPS.

Shares bounced 7.2% in midday trading Tuesday, reversing an earlier intraday loss of as much as 7.6%. The stock is now on track to snap a 10-session losing streak, which has been the longest since it went public on Sept. 30. The stock had tumbled 23.4% during its loss streak.

Palantir's revenue for the quarter rose to $341 million from $229 million a year prior, while analysts tracked by FactSet were projecting $332 million. The company added 11 new commercial customers in the latest quarter.

"Where the government response to the pandemic has been efficacious, we are seeing a commercial tailwind," Chief Operating Officer Shyam Sankar said on the company's earnings call, highlighting an 83% increase in U.S. government revenue.

Chief Financial Officer David Glazer said that Palantir now offers customers the option to pay in bitcoin and that the company is considering adding bitcoin or other crypto assets to its balance sheet.

"It's definitely on the table from a treasury perspective as well as other investments as we look across our business and beyond," he said on the company's earnings call.

For the fiscal second-quarter, Palantir anticipates revenue of $360 million, whereas the FactSet consensus calls for $344 million. The company also expects an adjusted operating margin of 23%.

The company continues to project annual revenue growth of at least 30% for 2021 through 2025.

Shares have fallen 40% over the past three months as the S&P 500 has risen 6%.

-Emily Bary; 415-439-6400; AskNewswires@dowjones.com

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May 11, 2021 12:36 ET (16:36 GMT)

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