Palantir Is A 'Retail-Driven Story,' Says Top Analyst As PLTR Stock Falls 9% In After-Hours: 'Not A Single Institutional Investor...Talks About This'

Palantir Technologies Inc. PLTR reported better-than-expected earnings Monday evening, yet the stock tumbled 9.25% in after-hours trading.

What Happened: Despite the strong results, two well-known analysts are taking very different positions on Palantir’s future.

Dan Ives of Wedbush remained firmly bullish. "You could print this press release off, frame it, and put it in the Louvre," Ives said during an appearance on CNBC. "I believe this is going to be a $1 trillion market cap in the next 2 to 3 years."

However, Brent Thill of Jefferies disagreed. While acknowledging Palantir's strong fundamentals, he remained cautious about the company's high valuation.

Palantir has now met or exceeded Wall Street's earnings and revenue expectations for seven straight quarters. Yet the company’s valuation, which some analysts say reflects 65 times its revenue, is drawing comparisons to previous tech high-fliers like Snowflake Inc. SNOW, whose valuations came back down to earth.

"This is a retail-driven story," Thill said. "There's not a single institutional investor I talk to that even talks about this."

Ives pushed back on that view, arguing that institutional skepticism has left many money managers behind the curve on one of the most transformative companies in AI.

Why It's Important: Palantir posted first-quarter revenue of $883.86 million, surpassing analyst expectations of $862.83 million. The company also raised its full-year revenue guidance to between $3.89 billion and $3.90 billion, well above previous projections.

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Palantir projects second-quarter revenue between $934 million and $938 million, again topping analyst expectations. The company currently has a market cap of $292.05 billion.

Price Action: Palantir shares have gained 64.61% so far this year and surged 390.96% over the past 12 months. On Monday, the stock dipped 0.41% during regular trading and slid another 9.25% in after-hours trading, closing at $112.32, according to data from Benzinga Pro.

Analysts have set a consensus price target of $69.76 for Palantir, based on input from 25 firms. The most bullish projection comes from Loop Capital, which issued a $125 target on March 13, 2025.

The latest updates from RBC Capital, Morgan Stanley, and DA Davidson average out to a price target of $76.67, indicating a potential downside of 31.74% from current levels.

According to Benzinga Edge Stock Rankings, Palantir boasts a strong growth score of 86.89%, underscoring its robust performance. Click here to see how it compares to other stocks.

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