Why Are Planet Labs Shares Surging On Thursday?

by | Feb 19, 2026 | General

Planet Labs PBC (NYSE:PL) shares are trading higher on Thursday, building on Wednesday’s surge as a combination of institutional ownership disclosure, sector tailwinds, and technical momentum keeps buyers engaged.

13G Filing Signals Institutional Conviction

The stock’s recent run began a day after a Schedule 13G/A filing revealed that Driehaus Capital Management owns 8.51 million Class A shares of Planet Labs, representing a 2.91% stake as of December 31.

The institutional investor reported shared voting and dispositive power over the position in an amended filing dated February 17.

Planet Labs is outperforming the broader market Thursday by 22 basis points. The Communication Services sector — PL’s home — is up 58 basis points on the day, while the S&P 500 is down 19 basis points. Over the past 30 days, the sector has gained 1.56% and 2.98% over 90 days.

Technical Picture Remains Bullish

Planet Labs has surged 323.71% over the past year. The stock currently trades 1% below its 20-day Simple Moving Average (SMA) but remains 36.8% above its 100-day SMA and 101.4% above its 200-day SMA.

Short Interest Worth Watching

Short interest rose modestly from 38.68 million to 38.95 million shares in the last reporting period, representing 13.78% of publicly available shares. Based on average daily volume of 15.14 million shares, short holders would need approximately 2.57 days to cover — a relatively tight squeeze window that could amplify moves in either direction.

Earnings & Analyst Outlook

Planet Labs is slated to provide its next financial update on March 19. With the earnings date approaching in more than two weeks, there’s a low urgency among investors, but anticipation is building around the company’s performance updates.

  • EPS Estimate: Loss of 8 cents (Stable YoY)
  • Revenue Estimate: $78.18 million (Up from $61.55 million YoY)

Analyst Consensus & Recent Actions: The stock carries a Buy Rating with an average price target of $13.06. Recent analyst moves include:

  • Morgan Stanley: Equal-Weight (Raises Target to $26.00) (January 14)
  • Wedbush: Outperform (Raises Target to $28.00) (January 13)
  • Citigroup: Buy (Raises Target to $30.00) (January 13)

PL Price Action: Planet Labs shares were up 0.42% at $23.84 at the time of publication on Thursday, according to Benzinga Pro data.

Photo: PJ McDonnell from Shutterstock