Palantir Technologies Inc. (PLTR) Stock Up 300% in 2023 Amid AI Boom, Faces Valuation Scrutiny from William Blair Analyst

We recently compiled a list of the 10 AI News Investors Should Not Miss. In this article, we are going to take a look at where Palantir Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ:PLTR) stands against the other AI stocks investors should not miss.

During an appearance on CNBC’s Squawk Box Europe, Matt Calkins, CEO of Appian, discussed the outlook for the artificial intelligence industry and regulation in the United States with Donald Trump set to become president.

When asked if there is a bit of a gold rush regarding AI, Calkins agreed. He said that AI comes with significant concerns, particularly among CEOs. This is because AI has the potential to embarrass organizations or compromise sensitive data, which creates hesitation. “We are all looking for a safe way to take the first step with AI,” he said.

READ NOW: 15 AI News Investors Shouldn’t Miss and 15 Buzzing AI Stocks Making Headlines 

Regarding whether companies are panicking about using AI profitably, Calkins observed a cautious approach from most businesses, while large tech firms have been investing aggressively. “It’s a calculated risk, and they should be doing it,” he said, contrasting this with the restraint shown by smaller companies.

Talking about regulation, Calkins revealed that the bottom line is that AI can be somewhat dangerous if misused, which underscores the importance of regulatory frameworks. He referenced the European AI Act as an example, explaining that regulation could focus on restricting how AI is used or limiting the types of data it can access.

With the Trump administration coming in, Calkins predicted a strong focus on competing with China in the tech space. He also mentioned Elon Musk’s influence on Trump, stating that Musk’s influence on the Trump administration is positive because he knows deeply about artificial intelligence.

In other recent news, Sam Altman has announced a special event titled “12 Days of OpenAI”. Altman will be revealing a new model or feature every weekday for two weeks, posted Altman on X, formerly Twitter. Some new models and features that users have been predicting include AI video generator Sora, the complete version of the “o1” reasoning model, and better control over ChatGPT’s Advanced Voice feature.

“Each weekday, we will have a livestream with a launch or demo, some big ones and some stocking stuffers”.

-Sam Altman

With OpenAI seemingly in holiday spirits, the series of reveals will be live-streamed starting December 5, continuing for the next twelve weekdays. It looks like a very merry Christmas for all the tech fans.

For this article, we selected AI stocks by going through news articles, stock analysis, and press releases. These stocks are also popular among hedge funds.

Why are we interested in the stocks that hedge funds pile into? The reason is simple: our research has shown that we can outperform the market by imitating the top stock picks of the best hedge funds. Our quarterly newsletter’s strategy selects 14 small-cap and large-cap stocks every quarter and has returned 275% since May 2014, beating its benchmark by 150 percentage points (see more details here).

A software engineer manipulating a vast network of code on virtual monitors.

Palantir Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ:PLTR)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 43

Palantir Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ:PLTR), a leading provider of artificial intelligence systems, has surged more than 300% this year. The stock surge can be largely attributed to its pivotal role in the AI revolution, securing significant government contracts and achieving its first profitable year, which ultimately led to its inclusion in the S&P 500 index. While investors are happy with the rewards they are reaping, some analysts are worried that the stock’s valuation isn’t in line with company fundamentals.

One such analyst is from William Blair, an American multinational investment bank and financial services company. On December 4, William Blair reaffirmed their “Underperform” rating on shares of Palantir Technologies in a research note issued to investors. Analyst Louie DiPalma is still skeptical about Palantir (PLTR) and remains critical of the stock, though he admits he underestimated the impact of factors unrelated to the company’s fundamentals that have driven its valuation higher.

“In our view, market conditions similar to what took place in 2022 could trigger a correction if they were to recur. Palantir shares declined 81% from January 2021 through December 2022 as revenue growth decelerated and there was an increased scrutiny on valuation”.

-William Blaire analyst Louie DiPalma

The bull case for Palantir rests on its artificial intelligence platform (AIP), but DiPalma pointed out that its revenue is still over $700 million below its 2025 target of $4.5 billion. Despite this, Palantir’s $158 billion market cap far exceeds competitors like Snowflake ($60.5 billion) and Databricks ($55 billion), despite that both generate similar or higher revenues with comparable growth. The analyst forecast that Palantir shares could drop by over 20% as part of a “phase-one rerating as the revenue multiples of Palantir and Snowflake converge”.

Overall PLTR ranks 8th on our list of the AI stocks investors should not miss. While we acknowledge the potential of PLTR as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that some AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns and doing so within a shorter timeframe. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than PLTR but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about the cheapest AI stock.

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Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.