Wedbush Securities has issued an endorsement of the artificial intelligence software sector, with Managing Director Dan Ives predicting that 2025 will be a pivotal year for AI implementation across the industry. This comes as Palantir Technologies Inc. continues its remarkable ascent, having surged 288% year-to-date.
What Happened: In a notable sector-wide upgrade, Ives raised Palantir’s price target to $75 while upgrading both Elastic NV and Snowflake Inc to Buy ratings. He also increased Salesforce Inc.‘s price target to $375, signaling broader confidence in the software sector’s AI potential.
“The AI Revolution is accelerating and now it’s the software sector that will benefit from the use case phase of AI set to be primetime in 2025,” Ives wrote, adding, “Software AI age here.”
The bullish outlook aligns with Palantir’s recent performance, which has seen its market capitalization soar to approximately $140 billion, surpassing defense contractor Lockheed Martin Corp. . The company’s growth has been particularly notable following recent political developments, with its stock reaching $61 per share.
Why It Matters: Palantir’s momentum is supported by concrete achievements, including a $480 million Pentagon contract for Project Maven and its first profitable year in 2023, reporting $144 million in third-quarter net income.
The company has successfully expanded its commercial sector revenue to 35% of total earnings, securing major contracts with CVS Health Corp. and BP plc .
However, some investors express caution regarding valuations. Major hedge funds, including Renaissance Technologies and ARK Investment Management, reduced their Palantir holdings in the third quarter, though maintaining significant positions.
The company’s P/E ratio of 328.85 and heavy retail investor base of approximately 50% have prompted discussions about potential market volatility.
Price Action: Palantir’s stock closed at $64.35 on Friday, gaining 4.87% during the regular trading session. In after-hours trading, the stock dipped slightly by 0.20%. Year-to-date, Palantir has seen a remarkable surge of 288.12%, according to data from Benzinga Pro.
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Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.
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Webush upgrades Snowflake, Elastic to Outperform on AI optimism
Investing.com-- Wedbush upgraded its rating on software firms Snowflake and Elastic , citing increased optimism over their exposure to the rapidly growing artificial intelligence industry, especially on an enterprise level.
Webush upgraded both Snowflake Inc (NYSE:SNOW) and Elastic NV (NYSE:ESTC) to Outperform from Neutral. The brokerage also hiked its price targets on software majors Palantir Technologies Inc (NYSE:PLTR) and Salesforce Inc (NYSE:CRM).
For Snowflake, Wedbush said it expects to see “marked improvement” in product revenues before an AI-fueled 2026. The cloud firm is in a “sweet spot” to benefit from AI use cases in the next 12 to 18 months, Wedbush said.
For Elastic, Wedbush said the cloud firm was likely to benefit from increased demand for its platform approach to cloud computing, especially with more customers looking to pivot from legacy vendors.
Cloud firms are expected to benefit from the rapidly growing computational requirements of AI programs, especially given that most AI users will be unwilling to set up their own AI server infrastructure.
Both Snowflake and Elastic clocked strong earnings last week, driving their stock prices to multi-month highs.
Wedbush hiked its price target on Palantir to $75 from $57, citing increased confidence in the firm’s AI as a platform strategy, as well as exposure to increased use cases for AI. The stock is rated as Outperform.
For Salesforce, Wedbush hiked its price target to $375 from $325 and maintained the stock at Outperform. The brokerage said it saw increased demand for Salesforce’s offerings, especially on the AI front.
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Dj Elon Musk Versus Lockheed? Say It Ain't So. - Barrons.Com
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Elon Musk Versus Lockheed? Say It Ain't So. — Barrons.com
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Super Micro Computer, Snowflake And MicroStrategy Are Among Top 10 Large-Cap Gainers Last Week (Nov 18-Nov 22): Are The Others In Your Portfolio?
These large-cap stocks were the best performers in the last week. Are they in your portfolio?
Super Micro Computer, Inc. shares rocketed 78.42%. The company announced it submitted a compliance plan to Nasdaq.
Snowflake Inc. stock jumped 32.93% after the company reported better-than-expected financial results for the third quarter and raised guidance. Several analysts raised price targets following the print.
Williams-Sonoma, Inc. stock escalated 31.63% after the company reported better-than-expected third-quarter 2024 results, announced a new $1 billion buyback program, and raised its outlook. Analysts boosted the price target on the stock.
Symbotic Inc. stock zoomed 31.52% after the company reported better-than-expected financial results.
Texas Pacific Land Corporation stock rose 27.21%.
Amer Sports, Inc. stock rose 25.71% after reporting third-quarter results. Multiple analysts raised their respective price targets.
Elastic N.V. shares upped 25.15% after the company reported second-quarter financial results and issued FY25 guidance above estimates. Several analysts boosted the price target on the stock.
MicroStrategy Incorporated shares escalated 23.85% after the company announced it completed its previously announced offering of its 0% convertible senior notes due 2029.
YPF Sociedad Anonima shares increased 23.59%, probably on continued strength after the nation received a credit upgrade from Fitch over the weekend.
Datadog, Inc. stock gained 23.59% last week in sympathy with Snowflake, which reported better-than-expected third-quarter results.
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Are Wall Street Analysts Bullish on Lockheed Martin Stock?
Lockheed Martin Corporation , headquartered in Bethesda, Maryland, is a security and aerospace firm specializing in the research, design, development, manufacturing, integration, and sustainment of technology systems, products, and services. Valued at a market capitalization of $128.5 billion, the company operates across various sectors, including space, telecommunications, electronics, information and services, aeronautics, energy, and systems integration.
Shares of this aerospace and defense giant have underperformed the broader market considerably over the past year. LMT has gained 20.4% over this time frame, while the broader S&P 500 Index ($SPX) has rallied nearly 31%. In 2024, LMT stock is up 19.6%, surpassing SPX’s 25.2% rise on a YTD basis.
Narrowing the focus, LMT has also lagged behind the iShares U.S. Aerospace & Defense ETF . The exchange-traded fund has gained about 31% over the past year and returned 22.1% this year.
Despite its underwhelming price action over the past year, Lockheed Martin is expected to see revenue growth driven by a steady inflow of orders for its diverse defense products, strong international market presence, and a solid order backlog.
On Nov. 19, Lockheed Martin shares saw a marginal rise, along with other defense stocks, due to the escalation of hostilities between Ukraine and Russia.
However, LMT stock saw a decline of more than 3% on Nov. 14, along with other defense stocks, following President-elect Trump's announcement of Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy leading a government spending cut commission, which raised concerns about potential reductions in government contracts.
For the current fiscal year, ending in December, analysts expect LMT’s EPS to decline 3.3% to $26.89 on a diluted basis. The company’s earnings surprise history is impressive. It beat the consensus estimate in each of the last four quarters.
Among the 21 analysts covering LMT stock, the consensus is a “Moderate Buy.” That’s based on 11 “Strong Buy” ratings, one “Moderate Buy,” eight “Holds,” and one “Strong Sell.”
This configuration is more bullish than three months ago with 10 analysts suggesting a “Strong Buy.”
On Oct. 23, RBC Capital lowered Lockheed Martin's price target to $665 from $675, while maintaining an “Outperform” rating. The price cut reflects concerns over soft Q3 sales, though the analyst views the company's initial 2025 outlook as potentially conservative. RBC highlighted strong sales and operating profit growth in the Missiles and Fire Control segment and noted that the F-35 recovery is "on track," which supports a positive outlook for 2025.
LMT’s mean price target of $607.33 indicates a premium of 12% from the prevailing market prices. The Street-high price target of $704 suggests an upside potential of 29.8%.
On the date of publication, Kritika Sarmah did not have (either directly or indirectly) positions in any of the securities mentioned in this article. All information and data in this article is solely for informational purposes. For more information please view the Barchart Disclosure Policy here.
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6 stocks that will benefit from the next wave of AI development, Bank of America says
A small group of stocks could capture the next burst of AI development, BofA said.
The firm sees a coming "Agentic AI wave," which includes developments like AI-powered apps and robots.
Strategists highlighted six large-cap stocks that represent its top picks for the next wave.
A new wave of AI development is about to take shape — and Wall Street is starting to divert its attention from the market's largest companies to a different group of stocks, according to Bank of America.
In a recent note, the bank's strategists said they foresaw a coming "Agentic AI wave," referring to the second phase of artificial intelligence development. Possible beneficiaries include companies that are beginning to deploy AI through apps, or industrial and commercial robots.
There are some signs AI innovation is already headed in that direction, the bank added, pointing to new features added to AI software, like Google's Gemini, and robotic security dogs being deployed at Trump's Florida Mar-a-Lago.
Meanwhile, Bank of America clients are already beginning to shift their focus from the market's top AI names, like Nvidia, to what the bank believes to be the "second phase of AI beneficiaries," the note said.
"We urge investors not to diminish AI's near-term disruption potential in this early stage. Upside is unlikely to be fully priced in across the AI investment stack and, specifically, across our software coverage, in our view," strategists wrote.
"We expect AI monetization across our coverage to begin in 2025 as software's AI moment arrives and monetization to become meaningful in 2026 as enterprise adoption accelerates," they continued.
The bank reiterated its focus on six large-cap stocks, which it said were among its top picks as the Agentic AI theme plays out.
1. Microsoft (MSFT)
Microsoft CopilotOmer Taha Cetin/Anadolu via Getty Images
In an early November note, the bank pointed to Microsoft's plans to supplement Copilot with more AI agents, which could help automate tasks related to sales, services, finances, and managing supply chains.
Strategists issued a price target of $510 a share, implying 23% upside from current levels.
2. Salesforce (CRM)
Gary Hershorn / Getty Images
Salesforce plans on integrating AI agents into its range of products, which can help automate tasks in areas like customer service and marketing, the bank said.
The firm also finalized a partnership with Nvidia to create avatars that can automate tasks in customer service, crisis management, and other areas.
Strategists issued a price target of $390 a share, implying 14% upside from current levels.
3. Adobe (ADBE)
Pavlo Gonchar/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images
Adobe is planning to work AI tools into its product suite, including its Creative Cloud and Experience Cloud platforms. That can help automate tasks related to data analysis and creating new content, strategists said.
Bank of America issued a price target of $640 a share, implying 20% upside from current levels.
4. ServiceNow (NOW)
Smith Collection/Gado/Getty Images
The company is planning to deploy AI agents on its Now Platform, which can help in areas like IT management and customer service.
Strategists issued a price target of $1,075 a share, implying 1% upside from current levels.
5. Intuit (INTU)
Signage for financial software company Intuit at the company's headquarters in the Silicon Valley town of Mountain View, California, August 24, 2016.Smith Collection/Gado/Getty Images
Intuit is also planning to integrate its AI agent across its range of products, which includes TurboTax, Credit Karma, and QuickBooks. That can automate tasks for users and businesses, like creating new bills or processing invoices.
Strategists issued a price target of $780 a share, implying 21% upside from current levels.
6. HubSpot (HUBS)
Lane Turner/The Boston Globe via Getty Images
The firm is planning to deploy an AI agent into its Marketing and Content Hub, which will help automate tasks in areas like marketing and sales.
Strategists issued a price target of $780 a share, implying 6% upside from current levels.
Read the original article on Business Insider
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