TLDR
- Peter Thiel has filed to sell 2 million Palantir ($PLTR) Class A shares worth ~$280M at $140/share through Merrill Lynch.
- PLTR has risen four straight sessions — its best run since early December — driven by U.S.-Israel strikes on Iran boosting defense stocks.
- Palantir holds major U.S. defense contracts including a $10B Army deal and a $448M Navy contract.
- Rosenblatt initiated with a Buy/$150 target; UBS upgraded to Buy with a $180 target, citing strong AI demand.
- Michael Burry, who holds a short position in PLTR, argued the Anthropic AI episode shows “stickiness is Claude’s tech, not Palantir’s.”
Peter Thiel has filed to sell up to 2 million Class A shares of Palantir Technologies (PLTR), valued at roughly $280 million at $140 per share. The sale would be executed through Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith, according to an SEC filing dated March 2.
Palantir Technologies Inc., PLTR
Thiel last sold PLTR stock in October 2024. He has been the company’s chairman since its founding in 2003 and remains one of its largest individual shareholders.
The timing is notable. PLTR has climbed for four consecutive sessions — its longest winning streak in nearly three months.
The rally was sparked by U.S. and Israel launching strikes on Iran, which pushed defense-linked stocks higher on fears the conflict could extend for weeks. Palantir was among the top gainers in the S&P 500 on Monday.
The company’s defense ties run deep. It holds a $10 billion U.S. Army contract and a $448 million Navy deal, making it a direct beneficiary when defense spending sentiment shifts.
Wall Street Turns Bullish
Last week brought two fresh upgrades. Rosenblatt initiated coverage with a Buy rating and a $150 price target, calling Palantir a “market-disrupting, uniquely positioned AI software leader.”
Rosenblatt also pointed to the recent pullback — with PLTR down about 33% from its October high — as an attractive entry point.
UBS went further, upgrading to Buy from Neutral with a $180 target. The bank called it a “premier growth story” positioned at the intersection of AI and data spending, citing strong demand in recent channel checks.
PLTR currently trades at around 110 times forward earnings and over 46 times forward revenue. The stock has risen more than 1,400% since its NYSE debut in September 2020.
Burry Keeps His Short
Not everyone is buying in. Michael Burry, who disclosed a short position in Palantir last year, added fresh criticism this week.
He weighed in on the U.S. government’s decision to grant a six-month phase-out period for Anthropic’s Claude AI, even after flagging it as a supply-chain risk. Burry argued the episode “shows the stickiness is Claude’s tech, not Palantir’s” — suggesting the underlying AI model matters more to defense workflows than the software layer around it.
Burry has also raised concerns about Palantir’s accounting, pointing out that accounts receivable have grown faster than revenue in recent quarters. He flagged rising costs tied to CEO Alex Karp’s personal jet use as well.
Bob Lang, founder of trading platform Explosive Options, offered a more grounded take: “They do not build weapons, missiles or planes,” and noted that “the big contracts for Palantir are important but likely already in the price of the stock.”
Palantir has 2,291,470,751 shares outstanding. UBS holds a $180 price target on the stock, the highest among recent analyst updates.
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