Palantir (PLTR) opened at $172.01 on Friday and climbed about 10% as investors continued reacting to the company's strong second-quarter results, which were reported on August 3.

Palantir Technologies Inc. reported second-quarter revenue of $1.94 billion, up 92.8% from the same period a year earlier and above Wall Street's $1.81 billion consensus estimate. Earnings per share came in at $0.41, ahead of the $0.34 forecast by seven cents.

The stock's move on Friday was partly driven by short covering. Bearish investors suffered heavy losses after the earnings release, while broader strength in technology shares also helped lift the stock.

Bank of America reiterated its Buy rating on PLTR and raised its price target to $255. The new target implies roughly 50% upside from recent trading levels.

The bank cited Palantir's artificial intelligence strategy, its expanding commercial business, and its long-standing government contracts as core strengths in the company's competitive position. Founded in 2003, Palantir built its foundational business on Gotham, a platform used by US defense and intelligence agencies, before expanding into commercial markets with Foundry. Its more recent product, AIP (Artificial Intelligence Platform), is designed to let organizations integrate large language models into their operational workflows.

Sovereign AI and Commercial Growth

Bank of America also highlighted Palantir's growing role in sovereign AI, a framework in which organizations deploy artificial intelligence while maintaining control over sensitive data and internal workflows. Sovereign AI has gained policy traction globally as governments seek domestic AI capabilities that comply with data-residency rules and national security requirements.

On the commercial side, the bank pointed to larger customer contracts and increased spending from existing clients. Those trends led the firm to raise its long-term earnings forecasts.

Northland Securities also increased its FY2026 EPS forecast to $1.24 from $1.08 and raised its FY2027 estimate to $1.53 from $1.39, indicating the earnings improvement may be durable.

A weaker-than-expected July jobs report added momentum to the rally. Softer labor data reduced expectations for a near-term Federal Reserve rate hike, which generally supports high-growth software valuations.

Valuation and Insider Activity

The stock still faces valuation concerns. PLTR trades at a price-to-earnings ratio of 147, a level that requires continued strong growth to remain justified. At a market capitalization of roughly $412 billion, Palantir is valued alongside the largest enterprise software companies despite generating less revenue than many of them, meaning investor expectations for AI-driven growth are embedded in the multiple.

Insiders sold more than 1.1 million shares worth approximately $150.7 million over the past 90 days. Most of those sales were made to cover tax obligations tied to vested equity awards.

Everhart Financial Group reduced its stake by 17.5% in the second quarter, selling 4,970 shares and retaining 23,358 shares valued at about $2.7 million.

ARK Invest also trimmed its PLTR position after the rally, while Michael Burry continues to hold a bearish position on the stock.

Analyst ratings currently stand at two Strong Buys, 20 Buys, 11 Holds, and three Sells. The consensus average price target is $190.73.

Mizuho raised its target from $185 to $215 and kept an outperform rating. Oppenheimer moved in the opposite direction, cutting its rating from outperform to market perform.

PLTR's 12-month low is $106.37 and its 12-month high is $207.52. The stock's 50-day moving average is $131.76.

Palantir has a market capitalization of $412.36 billion and a beta of 1.59. Return on equity for the quarter was 30.57%, and net margin was 49.01%.