Billionaire Peter Thiel throws Palantir stock again, cashing out over $1 billion this year

According to the financial news app Zhitong Finance, Peter Thiel, the co-founder and chairman of Palantir Technologies (PLTR.US), recently sold nearly $600 million worth of company stock, bringing his total sales for the year to over $1 billion. The billionaire sold over 16 million shares of Palantir stock through his investment firm Rivendell 7 LLC this week, on top of selling 20 million shares in March and May. While regulatory filings did not disclose the reason for Thiel's stock sales or how he plans to use the funds, these transactions highlight his confidence in the company's future. Thiel only sold common shares of Palantir, retaining shares with special voting rights to ensure continued control of the board alongside co-founders Alex Karp and Stephen Cohen. According to filings submitted by Palantir in August, Rivendell 7 LLC adopted a "10b5-1 rule plan" on May 15, allowing it to sell up to 28,590,737 shares by December 31, 2025. Thiel's most recent sale of Palantir stock was from May 8th to 10th, where he sold 13 million shares through trades scheduled until December, totaling $273.5 million with an average selling price of $21.11 per share. After these transactions, Rivendell 7 still holds 62.9 million shares of Palantir stock, while Thiel's other investment firm, STS Holdings II LLC, sold 5 million shares, leaving 15.7 million shares. Additionally, Thiel's other investment firms hold 21 million shares of Palantir stock and 32.5 million shares of Class B shares with super-voting rights. It is worth noting that Palantir's stock was recently included in the S&P 500 index, and its stock price has doubled so far this year. While Thiel's significant sales may attract some market attention, considering his emphasis on retaining voting control and the strong performance of the company's stock price, these transactions may not have a negative impact on Palantir's long-term prospects