How to Buy Palantir Stock – See Into the Future
Joy Wallet is advertiser-supported: we may earn compensation from the products and offers mentioned in this article. However, any expressed opinions are our own and aren't influenced by compensation. To read our full disclosure, click here.
What's in a name? In J.R.R. Tolkien's world, a Palantir was a crystal ball used to surveil Middle Earth, offering insights into the past, present, and future. In our world, Palantir Technologies has harnessed this concept into reality, albeit in big data analytics. Palantir, listed as PLTR on the NASDAQ, is not just a software company; it's a pioneer in providing sophisticated data analysis tools. From counter-terrorism to artificial intelligence platforms, Palantir’s software, particularly its Foundry platform, helps decipher complex data patterns, effectively 'watching over the world.'
Founded by renowned tech visionaries, including co-founder Peter Thiel, Palantir has grown into a company with a significant valuation, capturing the attention of Wall Street. Its products, like Foundry, have revolutionized how organizations handle large data sets. For a small investor, buying shares of Palantir offers an opportunity to be part of a company at the forefront of data analytics, playing a critical role in addressing global challenges.
In this article
Step 1: Finding a broker that offers Palantir stock
Online brokers are one way to buy specific stocks, especially for beginning investors who want to learn as they go and do it themselves. Here are three great online platforms.
Stash
Stash is an investment app that sells thousands of stocks and ETFs, or exchange-traded funds, for $3.
Stash has two types of accounts, each with a flat fee:
- Growth: $3 per month, with investment and retirement account access.
- Stash+: $9 per month. Everything from the above plan, plus an investment account for two children, among other things.
No opening deposit is required to open an account. Of course, you’ll need to deposit money to buy stocks.
Fractional shares can be bought on Stash. Funds are pooled with other Stash members to make high-priced, higher-earning stocks more affordable by receiving a fraction of a stock and a fraction of the returns.
Pros and cons
Pros
- Low monthly fees, starting at $3
- Fractional shares of stocks sold
- No minimum deposit to open an account
Cons
- Focuses on investment goals, not the purchase of individual stocks
Robinhood
Robinhood is an online broker where you can buy Palantir Technologies (NYSE: PLTR). It’s a free trading platform that can be used as an app on Apple iOS and Android phones or anywhere else online.
Signing up is easy. Linking your bank account to Robinhood gets you some free stock from the company.
A minimum deposit isn’t needed to open an account. Even with only a few dollars, you can invest through Robinhood. Signing up for its Instant or Cash accounts doesn’t require a monthly fee, so your investment costs can be $0.
The Robinhood Cash account allows zero-commission trades but excludes instant deposits or settlements. For $5 per month, users can upgrade to a Robinhood Gold account, which provides margin investing, where you borrow money from Robinhood to buy stocks.
Robinhood also has these three fees:
- Regulatory transaction fee that’s ultimately paid to the Securities and Exchange Commission, or SEC. The fee is $27.80 per $1 million of principal (sells only). The fee isn’t charged for values of $500 or less.
- A trading activity fee of $0.000166 per share (equity sells) and $0.00279 per contract (options sells). No fee is charged for buying 50 shares or less.
- American depositary receipt fee when buying foreign stocks traded on American exchanges.
One of the site’s best features is that it sells fractional shares. Instead of buying one full share of stock, you can buy a fraction of an equity stock for as little as $1. According to Robinhood, fractional shares can be as small as 1/1,000,000 of a share. Trading of fractional shares is done in real-time and is commission-free.
Most stocks worth over $1 per share with a market capitalization of over $25 million are eligible for fractional share orders on Robinhood. If a stock isn’t supported on the site, it will inform you when placing an order.
Pros and cons
Pros
- Not into commitments? Robinhood makes it easy to start investing.
- No monthly fees
- No minimum account balances
- Fractional shares of stocks sold
Cons
- Not as many investment products are offered as some competitors
- Not a goal-based strategy
- No phone number to call for customer support
Step 2: Research Palantir shares
Palantir Technologies Inc. was founded in Denver in 2003 by Peter Thiel, Nathan Gettings, Joe Lonsdale, Stephen Cohen, and Alex Karp. It’s a software company that specializes in big data analytics.
One of its projects that it’s most known for is Palantir Gotham. It’s used by counter-terrorism analysts in U.S. government agencies such as the Department of Defense to show operations progressing in real-time. While much of its business is from government contracts, Palantir has expanded to work with financial and healthcare industries.
As the company website explains, Gotham is an artificial intelligence-ready platform that connects every aspect of the decision-making process to enable faster, more accurate operations.
Check out Motley Fool's Stock Advisor service for the best information on Palantir Stock and related stocks.
Related: Motley Fool Review
Use Motley Fool's Stock Advisor To Invest
- Over 100 Stock Picks with 100%+ Returns
- Averaged Stock Pick Return over 593% (vs. 165% for the S&P)
- 2 New Stock Picks Every Month
- Investment Community With 700,000+ Loyal Members
- 30-Day Membership-Fee-Back Guarantee
- Joy Wallet Reader Deal: The Motley Fool is offering 50% off its top stock-picking service for new members (Limited Time)
Palantir price history
Palantir stock IPO d'd in September 2020. By late November 2020, it had almost tripled in price and hit a closing high of $35.18 on January 29, 2021. However, it has since dropped significantly and closed at $25.21 per share as of May 7, 2024.
Palantir dividend information
Palantir does not pay a dividend as a new company reinvesting the vast majority of its proceeds into the business. The software company’s expenses are growing as the company grows, and high expenses impact any possible dividend that Palantir may want to pay.
Palantir is better off using its cash to acquire or help the business grow in some other way.
Best features of Palantir stock
Following the investments of successful people can be a winding road, especially if you don’t have a big bank account to afford losses if a stock goes south. However, following Peter Thiel, who has invested his time and money in Facebook and PayPal, could be worthwhile. Thiel founded Palantir and is its largest shareholder. (He named the company, as well.)
Palantir’s growth prospects are increasing, allowing it to earn more money. Its platform can be used in various industries, from defense to health care to food and energy. Unlike many companies that go public, Palantir has quickly shown positive earnings results, starting at $0.06 per share in its first-ever quarter. More recently, however, the company reported a positive net income of $105.5 million in the first quarter of 2024 and an EPS of $0.08.
The company is relying less on its largest clients, government agencies. Most of its revenue comes from its top 20 accounts, but that reliance dropped over time and is moving towards commercial clients. The commercial revenue accounted for 24% of the total quarterly revenue.
It is still run by the same leadership as when it was founded. Thiel remains chairman, and Karp has been the CEO since 2004.
Step 3: Open an account & buy Palantir shares
Opening an online brokerage account is easy. You don’t have to fund an account immediately to open one, though you’ll need some money to buy at least one share of Palantir stock.
Using Stash, for example, is as easy as any other online broker. Start by clicking the blue “Get Started” button on the homepage and many other areas of the Stash website.
An email account and password are the first steps in creating an account.
You’ll next be asked to provide information about yourself so Stash can determine what type of investments you’re interested in. This is part of Stash’s aim of meeting your overall investment needs and not just focusing on buying one stock.
You’ll provide your name, birthdate, phone number, citizenship status, residential address, estimated pre-tax household income (to evaluate your risk tolerance), and reasons you want to invest.
Then, you pick a plan starting at $3 per month.
And, of course, pick a payment method.
If you go directly to the Investments page, you can look up a stock name or research stocks and ETFs to see if fractional shares are offered. You can also search by industry and by ETF category.
Palantir stock can be bought in fractional shares, with as little as $5 invested. Click the blue “Check out on Stash” button and the account signup process begins.
FAQs
How much were Palantir shares when the company first went public?
$10
How much does it cost to buy Palantir shares today?
The stock closed at $25.21 on May 7, 2024.
Does Palantir pay dividends?
The company doesn't pay dividends.
What is the minimum number of Palantir shares that I can buy?
You can buy one share, or you can buy a fractional share. Stash doesn’t list the minimum fractional share that can be bought, though it says the minimum investment is $5. Robinhood sells fractional shares in shares as small as 1 million parts of a share of stock, for as little as $1.
The bottom line
Palantir experienced a notable surge in its share price heading into early 2021, positioning it as a notable player on Wall Street. Although there has been a subsequent adjustment in its stock price, reflecting the common volatility in the stock market, the company continues to show promise. Its work with clients on big data issues and the growing reliance on data analytics across sectors suggests a bright future.
However, it's important for potential investors to note that Palantir is not a dividend-paying stock. This detail is crucial for those whose investment strategy includes earning dividends. Instead, investing in Palantir is more about betting on the company’s long-term growth and evolving role in the tech landscape. Its valuation and the performance of PLTR stock on NASDAQ offer insights into its market perception. Still, as with any stock, prospective buyers must weigh the risks and rewards, especially considering the inherent volatility of tech stocks. For those looking to buy Palantir stock, it represents an investment in a company reshaping how the world interacts with data.
Joy Wallet is an independent publisher and comparison service, not an investment advisor, financial advisor, loan broker, insurance producer, or insurance broker. Its articles, interactive tools and other content are provided to you for free, as self-help tools and for informational purposes only. They are not intended to provide investment advice. Joy Wallet does not and cannot guarantee the accuracy or applicability of any information in regard to your individual circumstances. We encourage you to seek personalized advice from qualified professionals regarding specific investment issues. Featured estimates are based on past market performance, and past performance is not a guarantee of future performance.
Our site doesn’t feature every company or financial product available on the market. We are compensated by our partners, which may influence which products we review and write about (and where those products appear on our site), but it in no way affects our recommendations or advice. Our editorials are grounded on independent research. Our partners cannot pay us to guarantee favorable reviews of their products or services.
We value your privacy. We work with trusted partners to provide relevant advertising based on information about your use of Joy Wallet’s and third-party websites and applications. This includes, but is not limited to, sharing information about your web browsing activities with Meta (Facebook) and Google. All of the web browsing information that is shared is anonymized. To learn more, click on our Privacy Policy link.
Images appearing across JoyWallet are courtesy of shutterstock.com.
Writer
Aaron Crowe is a freelance journalist who specializes in personal finance writing and editing. He has worked at newspapers, where he won a Pulitzer Prize, and has written for numerous online publications. These include AOL, US News & World Report, WiseBread, Bankrate, AARP, and many websites focusing on housing, credit and insurance. He lives in California with his wife and daughter.
Share this article
