The data analytics company Palantir Technologies (NYSE:PLTR) saw its stock price jump after announcing its second-quarter earnings. And given revenues came in significantly higher than expected, I can see why. Let’s take a closer look at how the company has been performing recently. And whether I should be adding some Palantir Technologies stock to my portfolio.

What does Palantir Technologies do?

The firm is a software company that offers a data analytics platform. With so much data being collected these days, Palantir Technologies provides a comprehensive solution for organisations to understand it all. As a result, its platform is being used by businesses and governments alike.

More recently, the technology has been adapted to help combat the spread of Covid-19 by tracking medical supply chains, tracing infection rates, and predicting future outbreaks in pandemic hot zones.

Financial highlights of the quarterly report

The high demand for the firm’s cutting-edge technology combined with continued efficiency improvements in distribution led to a 49% jump in revenue. The company reported $375.6m in gross income versus $251.89m a year ago.

A lot of this growth stems from its government-facing segment. Over the last couple of months, Palantir bagged new deals with the US Army, Air force, Coast Guard, Health & Human Services department and Center for Disease Control. As a result, income from this segment grew by 66%. And overall, it now represents around 62% of the total revenue stream is generated from government contracts. And these have continued to increase.

Palantir Technologies also managed to add 20 additional clients in the second quarter alone in the commercial-facing side of the business. This has helped push the total contract value of the company to $925m. That’s a 175% year-on-year! So, I’m not exactly surprised to see the Palantir Technologies stock price surge on the news.

Potential pressures on the horizon

Being a business-facing company has resulted in Palantir Technologies stock falling under the radar of most investors. But in the background, it has grown into a $48bn enterprise. However, its “backroom” approach to doing business might result in reputational damage in the eyes of individuals. Beyond using artificial intelligence to provide its analytics solutions, there is very little information about the operations of this company.

With individuals becoming more keenly aware of their lack of data privacy, the introduction of new regulations could disrupt the firm’s operations. And consequently, the Palantir Technologies stock price could suffer for it.

Final thoughts on Palantir Technologies

Palantir Technologies’ vision is to be able to mine and analyse large data sets. In today’s world, where data is king, the data analytics company has managed to become a leader within its space. 

Given that the management team raised third-quarter revenue guidance, it doesn’t look like the Palantir Technologies stock price is showing any signs of slowing down. Therefore, despite the risks, I am considering adding this stock to my portfolio today.