Palantir Technologies is one richly valued software stock, but it is still seen as one of the best ways to play the growth of artificial-intelligence computing in governments and enterprises. That idea is helping shares again on Tuesday.
BofA Securities analyst Mariana Perez Mora recently spent time with Palantir in Korea, taking the company to some of BofA’s clients in Asia. “We came back from [a] non-deal roadshow confident as Palantir’s growth continues to build momentum in tandem with enterprise-level AI adoption,” wrote Perez Mora.
Palantir’s AI-enabled software platforms for data analysis are becoming more important as companies and defense departments look to integrate data from multiple sources.
“As AI accelerates, enterprises are realizing that the ontology is key to incorporate these rapidly evolving capabilities,” added the analyst. Ontology, in this instance, means the ability to structure and understand data. Palantir is simply the software “stack of choice to implement AI at scale,” according to Perez Mora.
She rates shares Buy and has a $255 price target for shares, up almost 40% from recent levels.
Palantir stock closed up 2.5% at $187.75, while the S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.2% and 0.6%, respectively.
Her note probably helped the stock. So did the Trump Administration. In addition to BofA’s positive comments, the federal Office of Personnel Management announced it is launching what it calls the United States Tech Force, a “cross-government program to recruit top technologists to modernize the federal government.”
“President Trump has made clear that securing America’s leadership in AI is the paramount national challenge of this generation,” reads part of a Monday news release. “The president’s AI Action Plan focuses on unleashing private sector innovation while also recognizing the federal government must have the technical talent to lead in technology modernization.”
The release doesn’t cite companies, but Palantir stock tends to react to AI news and the prospect of more AI spending by the federal government.
BofA’s Perez Mora is a bit of an outlier. Overall, only 26% of analysts covering Palantir stock rate shares Buy, according to FactSet. The average Buy-rating ratio for stocks in the S&P 500 is about 55%. The average analyst price target for Palantir stock is about $189. Perez Mora’s price target is the highest on the Street, according to FactSet.
Valuation might be a headwind for other analysts. Palantir enjoys the distinction of being one of the most expensive stocks in the S&P 500, trading for almost 190 estimated earnings expected over the coming 12 months. Only Tesla trades more richly, according to FactSet. Its PE ratio is about 220.
Valuation has been less of a problem for investors. Coming into Tuesday trading, Palantir stock was up 142% year to date.
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