Salesforce, Palantir lead enterprise software stocks higher to start week

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) and Palantir (NYSE:PLTR) led an array of enterprise software stocks higher on Monday.

Salesforce climbed 6% by the time markets closed. Last week, Salesforce announced it was hiring about 1,000 employees to help sell its new generative artificial intelligence platform Agentforce. The stock has climbed more than 60% year to date.

Palantir closed the day 3% higher. It was one week after the software company reported third-quarter financial results that prompted shares to surge. Demand for the company’s Artificial Intelligence Platform, or AIP, has expanded from government deals to a wide array of commercial enterprises. During the third quarter of 2024, Palantir’s U.S. government revenue increased 40% year over year, and its U.S. commercial segment grew 54%.

Palantir stock has shot up 45% over the past seven days and nearly 250% year to date.

“Palantir is way ahead of many end-user-oriented AI companies that are still finding their footing,” said Seeking Alpha analyst Marc Gerstein. “Palantir’s multi-decade prowess in advanced mission-critical analytics is already making its AI genuinely valuable, too.”

It was a good day for several other enterprise software stocks as well. Adobe (NASDAQ:ADBE) edged up 2%, while ServiceNow (NYSE:NOW) increased 2.7%. Workday (NASDAQ:WDAY) climbed 3%. Atlassian (NASDAQ:TEAM) shares increased 3.4%.

Wedbush Securities indicated last week the victory by U.S. President-elect Donald Trump would likely prove bullish for AI and tech stocks in general. They said “major AI initiatives” could come from agencies such as the Department of Defense and boost companies like Palantir.