Dave Kovaleski

Ohio electric companies owned by FirstEnergy, including Ohio Edison, The Illuminating Company, and Toledo Edison, are seeking to withdraw their current Electric Security Plan (ESP) 5, which took effect on June 1. If the request ... Read More »

A report from Leuthold Group said the performance of the Dow Jones has been a reliable election predictor. Here’s how.

The S&P 500 was down slightly in October, snapping a five-month winning streak. These are the top 3 stocks on the S&P 500 last month.

BNY Mellon acquires Pennsylvania-based fintech

Dominion Energy has installed 78 monopile foundations and four offshore substation foundations for the 2.6-gigawatt Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind (CVOW) project. This is ahead of the company’s initial objectives of installing at least 70 monopiles ... Read More »

The Treasury Department’s Community Development Financial Institutions Fund and the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) have established a new working group.© Shutterstock The CDFI Fund-FHFA Working Group will help more CDFIs access affordable capital from Federal Home Loan Banks (FHLBs) to address affordable housing needs in distressed communities not served by traditional banks and lenders. […]

A group of Democratic lawmakers recently expressed concerns that Medicare Advantage (MA) is failing to meet its standards.

When you purchase through our sponsored links, we may earn a commission. By using this website you agree to our T&Cs. Key Points Palantir stock was up some 20% after Q3 earnings beat. The company saw revenue rise 30% and earnings jump 100%. Is Palantir stock a buy? Data analytics firm Palantir had a huge third quarter, driving the stock 20% higher on earnings beat. Palantir Technologies (NYSE:PLTR) reported impressive results in the third quarter, which drove the stock price 20% higher in early trading on Tuesday. The AI data analytics firm saw revenue rise 30% year-over-year in Q3 to a record $726 million, which topped estimates to $703 million. Net income rose 100% to $143 million, or 6 cents per share, while adjusted earnings came in at 10 cents per share, which bested estimates of 9 cents. Palantir also had a bullish outlook for the fourth quarter and full fiscal year, which also propelled the stock higher. Palantir stock has been on an absolute tear this year, rising 190% year-to-date to over $50 per share. AI demand fuels growth Palantir produces software for commercial and government customers that allows them to collect and analyze massive amounts of data to develop generative AI models for improved decision-making and other functions. As such, it is very much an AI stock , as the boom in AI has accelerated its meteoric growth. That was certainly the case in Q3. “We absolutely eviscerated this quarter, driven by unrelenting AI demand that won't slow down. This is a U.S.-driven AI revolution that has taken full hold. The world will be divided between AI haves and have-nots. At Palantir, we plan to power the winners,” Alexander Karp , Palantir co-founder and CEO, said. In Q3, Palantir saw the fastest growth in the U.S. portion of its business, as revenue rose 44% to $499 million. Revenue from government contracts accounted for most of that, growing 40% year-over-year and 15% quarter-over-quarter to $320 million. “The U.S. government business is surging as our customers embrace AI,” Karp said in his letter to shareholders, with revenue coming from the defense and intelligence agencies. The commercial business, while smaller, had even faster growth, rising 54% year-over-year and 13% quarter-over-quarter to $179 million. “The U.S. market remains the core of our business,” Karp wrote in the shareholder letter . “It is where we have seen institutions respond most rapidly to the promise of artificial intelligence, as companies and government agencies race to implement the technical infrastructure that is necessary to unleash the power of language models across their proprietary and most valuable datasets.” Overall, Palantir closed 104 deals of more than $1 million in the quarter, and its customer count grew 39% year-over-year and 6% quarter-over-quarter. Further, it generated $434 million in free cash and boosted its free cash flow to over $1 billion on a 12-month basis for the first time. Palantir raises Q4 guidance Investors were thrilled with Palantir's outlook for Q4, as the company anticipates between $767 million and $771 million in revenue, which would be up about 6% from the third quarter numbers at the midpoint. Year-over-year that would represent growth of around 26%. In addition, adjusted income from operations is pegged at $298 million to $302 million, up from $276 million in Q3 and $209 million in Q4 of 2023. For the full year, Palantir raised its revenue guidance to between $2.805 to $2.809 billion, up from the previous $2.652 to $2.668 billion. U.S. commercial revenue guidance was also bumped up to $687 million, representing a growth rate of at least 50%. Meanwhile, the adjusted income from operations guidance was boosted to a range of $1.054 to $1.058 billion. “It is the speed with which institutions in the United States, in particular, have adopted our platforms and artificial intelligence capabilities more broadly that has been, and we believe will continue to be, the driver of our growth,” Karp wrote. Is Palantir a buy? If you bought Palantir at the start of the year, you surely enjoyed the ride, but the question now is if earnings is enough to justify the sky-high valuation? The stock is trading at 207 times earnings and 100 times forward earnings. The valuation is definitely something to watch, especially after today's rally. The consensus price target among analysts is $28 per share, which would suggest a 43% decline. Palantir stock has a lot going for it, certainly with it technology, the overall growth and demand for AI, and its success in landing large government contracts. However, investors may want to wait for a better opportunity to jump in because the valuation looks too high right now. Our Editorial Standards At ValueWalk, we're committed to providing accurate, research-backed information. Our editors go above and beyond to ensure our content is trustworthy and transparent. Senior News Writer Dave has extensive experience writing about stocks, personal finance, and investing. Before joining ValueWalk, Dave was a writer/analyst at The Motley Fool, where he mainly covered financials, consumer goods, market movers, and technology stocks. Dave has also written about personal finance for Standard & Poor's, money markets for Crane Data, financial regulations for Macallan Communications, and institutional investments for Pensions & Investments. His articles have appeared in USA Today, Yahoo Finance, Nasdaq, MSN, Fox Business, and in newspapers across the country. He has also written two local history books in his native Massachusetts. Dave has extensive experience writing about stocks, personal finance, and investing. Before joining ValueWalk, Dave was a writer/analyst at The Motley Fool, where he mainly covered financials, consumer goods, market movers, and technology stocks. Dave has also written about personal finance for Standard & Poor's, money markets for Crane Data, financial regulations for Macallan Communications, and institutional investments for Pensions & Investments. His articles have appeared in USA Today, Yahoo Finance, Nasdaq, MSN, Fox Business, and in newspapers across the country. He has also written two local history books in his native Massachusetts.

When you purchase through our sponsored links, we may earn a commission. By using this website you agree to our T&Cs. Key Points Berkshire Hathaway missed earnings estimates in Q3. The company also sold off more Apple stock. Is Berkshire Hathaway stock a buy? Warren Buffett's firm missed Q3 earnings estimates. Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE:BRK.A) (NYSE:BRK.B) the conglomerate run by Warren Buffett, has seen its stock price fall nearly 3% since it posted third quarter earnings on Saturday that fell short of earnings estimates. The conglomerate run by Warren Buffett posted revenue of $93 billion in the quarter, which was essentially flat year-over-year. However, the company's operating earnings, from the portfolio of businesses it owns, fell about 6.5% to $10.1 billion. Operating earnings per share on its “B” shares were $4.68 per share, which came in below $4.89 EPS estimates. Earnings were most impacted by higher losses in its insurance business, including $565 million in losses from Hurricane Helene and increases in liabilities for prior accident years' claims. The disappointing operating results likely led to the selloff this week, but there were also major changes to Berkshire's multi-billion-dollar investment portfolio that may have influenced investors. Selling more Apple stock Berkshire Hathaway is known for its massive portfolio of stocks, which reported $18.6 billion in unrealized investment gains in the quarter and $1.9 billion in realized gains from stocks sold during the quarter. But this year, in particular, Buffett has been paring the portfolio, selling off shares of stocks that the company has held for years. That continued in the third quarter, as Berkshire Hathaway sold more of its largest position – Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL). Apple has been far and away Berkshire's largest holding for years, and it still is, although the company's stake is much smaller than it was. In the third quarter earnings report, the company said it owned a $69.9 billion stake in Appel, which is down from $84 billion at the end of Q2. But just nine months prior, on December 31, 2023, Berkshire owned $174.3 billion in Apple stock , so it has cut about 60% of its position since then. At the end of 2023, Apple accounted for 49% of the $353 billion Berkshire Hathaway portfolio; now it makes up about 26% of the $271 million portfolio. More AMEX, less Bank of America Another notable shift in the portfolio is the rise of American Express (NYSE:AXP) and the decline of Bank of America (NYSE:BAC). Bank of America has long been the second largest stock in the portfolio, but now it is third behind American Express. Berkshire has a $44.1 billion stake in American Express, or roughly 16% of the total portfolio, while the stake in Bank of America is $31.7 billion, or 11.7%. At the beginning of 2024, Berkshire owned $28.4 billion of American Express stock and $34.8 billion of Bank of America shares. Buffett did not elaborate on these portfolio shifts in the earnings report, but it suggests a bearish view of the market, likely based on the idea that it is overpriced. It also means he is hording cash, with a record $325 billion in cash on the sidelines, up from $277 billion at the end of Q2. This pile of cash suggests that Buffett and his team are not finding any good values worth splurging on right now and they are content to generate solid yields that Treasury bills and cash investment are generating right now. More details on the shares that Berkshire bought and sold in Q3 will be available when the company files its 13F form with the SEC in the weeks ahead. Is Berkshire Hathaway stock a buy? Berkshire Hathaway's performance in the third quarter was mostly related to underwriting losses due to Hurricane Helene and it will likely take another hit from losses due to Hurricane Milton in Q4. With the diverse group of businesses it owns, Berkshire Hathaway is built to weather storms like this and continue to churn out solid gains. In addition, the company is also stock piling cash, which it can deploy toward new investments that can drive future profits. Apple stock still remains Berkshire's largest holding, but the portfolio had gotten top heavy so its probably wise to diverse it a bit more. Berkshire Hathaway stock is cheap, trading at about 9 times earnings, and it has a median price target of $495 per share, which is about 12% higher than its current price. Due to its management, its track record, and its focus on value, Berkshire Hathaway is pretty much always a buy, particularly on a dip like this and particularly in an uncertain market. Our Editorial Standards At ValueWalk, we're committed to providing accurate, research-backed information. Our editors go above and beyond to ensure our content is trustworthy and transparent. Senior News Writer Dave has extensive experience writing about stocks, personal finance, and investing. Before joining ValueWalk, Dave was a writer/analyst at The Motley Fool, where he mainly covered financials, consumer goods, market movers, and technology stocks. Dave has also written about personal finance for Standard & Poor's, money markets for Crane Data, financial regulations for Macallan Communications, and institutional investments for Pensions & Investments. His articles have appeared in USA Today, Yahoo Finance, Nasdaq, MSN, Fox Business, and in newspapers across the country. He has also written two local history books in his native Massachusetts. Dave has extensive experience writing about stocks, personal finance, and investing. Before joining ValueWalk, Dave was a writer/analyst at The Motley Fool, where he mainly covered financials, consumer goods, market movers, and technology stocks. Dave has also written about personal finance for Standard & Poor's, money markets for Crane Data, financial regulations for Macallan Communications, and institutional investments for Pensions & Investments. His articles have appeared in USA Today, Yahoo Finance, Nasdaq, MSN, Fox Business, and in newspapers across the country. He has also written two local history books in his native Massachusetts.

Image Source: Pexels Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE: BRK-A ) (NYSE: BRK-B ) the conglomerate run by Warren Buffett, has seen its stock price fall