Alex Karp, CEO of Palantir Technologies, speaking in April in Washington DC. Photo by Kevin … More
A 446% gain in Palantir Technologies Inc. (PLTR) propelled Christy Anderson to a victory in the 2024-2025 running of Dorfman’s Three-Stock Derby, an annual stock-picking contest.
Anderson, a resident of Las Vegas, Nevada, is chief operating officer for a small company that makes radio frequency amplifiers with military applications.
As such, she became familiar with Palantir, an analytical software company whose Gotham platform is used by the U.S. military and Western-allied nations. Her company doesn’t do business with Palantir, and she doesn’t own the stock.
In fact, Anderson doesn’t own any stocks. “The stock market to me is just gambling,” she says. “I’m very intrigued by it though. I look at stocks every day.”
Anderson also picked Novo Nordisk AS (NVO), a Danish pharmaceutical company, and Hive Digital Technologies Ltd. (HIVE), which mines digital currencies. Both suffered losses, but her gain on Palantir was so huge that she ended with a 121% combined return, easily capturing first place.
Palantir is “probably overpriced now,” Anderson says. “They don’t really have the revenue to justify their market price.”
When she entered the contest, she wrote that ”the number of military hotspots continues to grow,” and that the military “will need an increasing number of unmanned assets.”
Anderson expects that the stock market will be volatile in the coming year, and will be little changed a year from now, after a lot of ups and downs.
Sanders Second
Donny Sanders, an accountant in Worcester, Massachusetts, took second place with an 82% gain. All three of his selections rose, led by Strategy (MSTR) with a 149% advance.
Tesla Inc. (TSLA) chipped in a 58% gain, while iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) gained 39%. Of the three stocks, Sanders actually holds only one, Tesla. He doesn’t own a Tesla car, but “might get one eventually,” he says. He regards the car as “a super piece of technology.”
Sanders doesn’t have a strong guess as to what the market will do in the coming year. “Hold for the long term, that’s my motto,” he says.
Robinson Third
Ronald Robinson, a retiree in Pahrump, Nevada, took third place with a 48% combined gain on his three choices. Spotify Technology SA (SPOT) led the way, with a 107% gain. Uber Technologies Inc. (UBER) returned 25% and Energy Transfer LP (ET) 11%.
Robinson formerly worked for a transportation company in Alaska. He invests in stocks “just for kind of fun,” he says.
Robinson is optimistic about the market for the coming year. Lately, he says, the market has been “based on negative news. If the negative news can simmer down, I think the market will be good.” He thinks the U.S. and China will probably reach “some kind of agreement” on trade.
Eighteen Up
Of 34 contestants, three saw all three of their picks go up. They were Sanders, Robinson, and Larry Weiner, a real estate agent in Las Vegas. Eighteen contestants notched positive returns, and 16 showed a loss. The Standard & Poor’s 500 Total Return Index was up 6.8% for the contest period.
You Can Play
You are welcome to enter the next running of Dorfman’s Three-Stock Derby. This will be the 18th stock-picking contest I have run, and the ninth in which contestants have to pick three stocks, not just one.
To enter, send me:
- Your name
- Address
- Occupation
- Email address
- Home and work phone numbers.
- The names and stock symbols of the three stocks you choose. You don’t have to give your reasons but I appreciate it if you do.
Email me your entry at jdorfman@dorfmanvalue.com. Or mail it to John Dorfman, Dorfman Value Investments, 101 Federal Street, Suite 1900, Boston MA 02110.
Entries must be postmarked or time stamped by midnight May 31, 2025. The contest period will be from the market close on that date through the close on April 30, 2026.
If you finish in the top three, I will want to interview you on short notice and possibly on a weekend, so the phone numbers are important.
You do not need to own the stocks you select, but it’s fine if you do. Stocks must be traded in the U.S., but need not necessarily be U.S. companies. Short sales are permitted but not encouraged, since I have a separate short-selling contest. Exchange traded funds (ETFs) are permitted.
There’s no fee to enter. The winner will receive a $100 gift certificate to the restaurant of her or his choice.
Disclosure: I own Novo Nordisk personally and for most of my clients.
