New York, Jan 8, 2026, 10:01 EST — Regular session
Palantir Technologies (PLTR.O) shares were up 0.1% at $181.81 on Thursday after swinging between $180.59 and $186.89 in early trade. Truist Securities initiated coverage with a buy rating and a $223 price target, calling the stock a “best-in-class AI asset” and pointing to demand for generative AI — software that can produce text and code — across governments and companies.
The call lands as PLTR stock trades like a referendum on whether AI spending can stay hot and profitable at the same time. Truist framed its target as a 28.1% upside to the prior close and said Palantir’s ability to stitch together proprietary data leaves it well placed as firms push more decisions through AI-driven workflows.
That argument runs into the price tag. Truist analyst Arvind Ramnani said Palantir can grow into an enterprise value-to-sales multiple above 70 — a yardstick that compares a company’s value with revenue — and pegged the 2025 addressable market at $335 billion, with $210 billion in commercial opportunities and Palantir at about a 1.3% share. He cited 63% revenue growth and a 51% adjusted operating margin, a measure of operating profit as a share of sales.
The broader tape is also doing its own work. Defense-linked stocks jumped after President Donald Trump called for a $1.5 trillion U.S. military budget for 2027, up from $901 billion approved for 2026, though budget experts questioned the math and Congress would have to approve any plan. Lockheed Martin rose 6.2%, General Dynamics gained 4.4% and RTX added 3.5% on the day.
But the stock’s premium cuts both ways, and insider selling keeps surfacing in filings. A Form 4 showed Chief Revenue Officer and Chief Legal Officer Ryan D. Taylor sold 12,000 shares on Jan. 2 under a 10b5-1 plan — a pre-arranged program for stock trades — leaving him with 239,409 shares.
Palantir’s next test is earnings, with results estimated on Feb. 2. Traders will parse guidance and any update on commercial demand for the company’s Artificial Intelligence Platform, alongside signals on government spending pipelines.
