Goldman Sachs Group Inc. Increases Holdings in Palantir Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ:PLTR)

Key Points

• Goldman Sachs raised its stake in Palantir Technologies by 38.5%, holding over 15 million shares worth approximately $1.28 billion as of the end of the first quarter.
• Palantir recently reported $1 billion in quarterly revenue, exceeding estimates, and an earnings per share of $0.16, above the predicted $0.14.
• The stock has seen strong analyst interest with price targets ranging from $90 to $200, with a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $122.80.

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Palantir Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ:PLTR - Free Report) by 38.5% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 15,180,154 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 4,221,392 shares during the quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. owned 0.65% of Palantir Technologies worth $1,281,205,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. MGB Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Palantir Technologies by 64.4% in the 1st quarter. MGB Wealth Management LLC now owns 6,035 shares of the company's stock valued at $510,000 after buying an additional 2,365 shares during the period. Legacy Capital Group California Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Palantir Technologies during the first quarter worth about $377,000. Clear Investment Research LLC raised its position in shares of Palantir Technologies by 14.2% in the 1st quarter. Clear Investment Research LLC now owns 1,407 shares of the company's stock valued at $119,000 after purchasing an additional 175 shares in the last quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Palantir Technologies by 212.9% during the 1st quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC now owns 726 shares of the company's stock worth $61,000 after acquiring an additional 494 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Comprehensive Financial Planning Inc. PA bought a new position in Palantir Technologies during the 1st quarter worth approximately $53,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 45.65% of the company's stock.

Palantir Technologies Stock Performance

NASDAQ:PLTR traded up $2.66 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $182.20. 77,586,531 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 60,547,432. Palantir Technologies Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $26.69 and a fifty-two week high of $184.48. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $144.43 and its 200 day simple moving average is $114.82. The stock has a market capitalization of $429.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 607.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 13.07 and a beta of 2.60.

Palantir Technologies (NASDAQ:PLTR - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Monday, August 4th. The company reported $0.16 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.14 by $0.02. Palantir Technologies had a net margin of 22.18% and a return on equity of 10.75%. The firm had revenue of $1 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $939.29 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.09 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 48.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that Palantir Technologies Inc. will post 0.31 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently commented on the stock. Bank of America raised their price objective on shares of Palantir Technologies from $150.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price target on Palantir Technologies from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an "underperform" rating in a report on Tuesday. Mizuho raised Palantir Technologies from an "underperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and raised their price objective for the company from $116.00 to $135.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on Palantir Technologies from $90.00 to $141.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald raised their price objective on shares of Palantir Technologies from $110.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seventeen have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $136.61.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Shyam Sankar sold 405,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $132.08, for a total value of $53,492,400.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 702,786 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $92,823,974.88. This represents a 36.56% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Stephen Andrew Cohen sold 309,696 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $126.39, for a total transaction of $39,142,477.44. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 592 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $74,822.88. This trade represents a 99.81% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 1,515,632 shares of company stock worth $196,472,623. 9.23% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About Palantir Technologies

Palantir Technologies, Inc engages in the business of building and deploying software platforms that serve as the central operating systems for its customers. It operates under the Commercial and Government segments. The Commercial segment focuses on customers working in non-government industries. The Government segment is involved in providing services to customers that are the United States government and non-United States government agencies.