Ethereum (ETHUSD) is one of the most popular cryptocurrencies available, and Palantir Technologies (PLTR) has been the top-performing stock in the S&P 500 Index ($SPX) for the entire year 2024 and so far in 2025. In fact, Palantir’s dramatic rise has pushed its market capitalization into the top 25 of all publicly traded companies, currently at $370 billion.
However, a recent surge in Ethereum, coupled with a few days of underwater trading for Palantir, has the market on edge. Ethereum’s price is up 13% in the last month, pushing its market cap over $500 billion, and once again making Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin a billionaire.
Now, as we look toward the future, which of these heavyweight investments is the better buy: cryptocurrency stalwart Ethereum or data analysis powerhouse Palantir? Let’s look at both in this head-to-head matchup.
Ethereum got a lot of attention this month when it had a rally of nearly 20% in a single week. It’s the second-largest cryptocurrency on the planet, behind Bitcoin (BTC), but there’s a lot of people who prefer Ethereum over the OG of crypto. Unlike Bitcoin, which is purely a store of value, Ethereum functions like a layer of infrastructure for blockchain itself. Its network allows decentralized applications and platforms to function on the emerging Web3 ecosystem. Developers and institutions use Ethereum to build products and services on the blockchain.
While investors could trade Ethereum on some exchanges, the first Ethereum exchange-traded funds didn’t launch until last year. Ethereum got yet another boost on Aug. 7 when President Donald Trump signed an executive order that could allow alternative assets like Bitcoin and Ethereum to be included in 401(k) retirement accounts.
Institutional adoption of Ethereum could potentially bring millions of new investors that could push the coin even higher.
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Until recent days, Palantir could seemingly do no wrong. The data mining company’s stock has been on a roll since it released its Artificial Intelligence Platform (AIP), which incorporates generative AI into Palantir’s extraordinarily powerful products.
Palantir provides real-time analytics and insights to its customers. By tapping into hundreds of data sources, including satellites, Palantir quickly established itself as a valuable military contractor after its founding in 2003. It has even been credited with helping to lead U.S. sources to the final hiding place of September 11 mastermind Osama bin Laden. The company’s Gotham platform provides intelligence agencies and the military with real-time analysis and data, so commanders could make rapid but informed decisions.
Its Foundry platform, meanwhile, is used more often by commercial clients. Foundry uses AIP and Palantir’s powerful analytics platform to help businesses do things such as manage supply chains, modernize operations, simulate scenarios and monitors workflow to help managers run companies more effectively.
Earnings in the second quarter were strong. Palantir reported $1 billion in quarterly revenue for the first time, with its sales jumping 48% from a year ago. U.S. commercial revenue was up 93% to $306 million, and U.S. government revenue was up 53% to $426 million.
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While Ethereum has the advantage in terms of market capitalization, it would be a mistake to assume that the asset with the higher market cap would be the best investment. Ethereum has the advantage today – on that one metric – but how long will that last?
Currently, Ethereum is priced at roughly $4,300, which is only about 13% below its all-time high. But this cryptocurrency is wildly volatile; the price has been as low as $1,386 in the last 12 months. Ethereum had one of these run-ups before, in October 2021, but lost 81% of its value by June 22, falling to less than $900 briefly.
Palantir has its own questions. The company has been wildly successful in the last two years, but there are critics who say that the company’s valuation is out of hand. And they could be right. Palantir’s price-to-earnings ratio (P/E) is a woeful 709, meaning that investors are paying $709 for a single dollar of PLTR earnings. That’s a lot for a company that didn’t start turning a profit until 2023, and that dumps a massive amount of its revenue back into the company for research and development. Even in Palantir’s wildly successful second quarter, the company recorded earnings of only 16 cents per share. Its forward P/E ratio of 400 shows that profits are already baked into what the market thinks Palantir will do in 2026 (analysts surveyed by Barchart are expecting 450% earnings growth this year, but only 31.8% in 2026).
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Both of these opportunities could rightly give an investor pause. Ethereum’s role in Web3 and makes it compelling for risk-tolerant investors, but its volatility and lack of earnings make it speculative compared to Palantir’s predictable growth. Palantir, meanwhile, is revolutionizing commercial enterprises and governments with its AIP platform and massive data mining capabilities.
Palantir is bringing in new business hand over fist. It signed 157 deals in the second quarter valued at least $1 million, with 42 of them valued at least $10 million. In addition, Palantir’s government work is continuing to grow as the Trump administration gives the go-ahead for Palantir to work with the State Department, Homeland Security, Health & Human Services, the Internal Revenue Service, and more.
Palantir is taking a dip now on sentiment – that’s going to happen to every company. But in the long term, Palantir is the better investment, regardless of what happens with Ethereum’s market cap.
On the date of publication, Patrick Sanders had a position in: PLTR. All information and data in this article is solely for informational purposes. This article was originally published on Barchart.com
