Anthropic S-1: Record Growth, but is the IPO a Buy?

Anthropic Releases S-1

In late October, Anthropic officially filed its highly anticipated Form S-1 (required for an IPO) with the SEC. The company will IPO under the “ANT” ticker and is expected to garner a $2 trillion valuation (based on the $100B expected IPO raise). Founded just 5 years ago by former OpenAI employee Dario Amodei and six others, Anthropic has become the fastest-growing company in history. Against all odds and tough competition, Anthropic’s large language model (LLM) “Claude” has become a staple among deep-pocketed, sticky enterprise customers.

Anthropic: The Fastest Growing Company in History

In the first half of 2026, Anthropic reported $16.3 billion in revenue (1,300% YoY growth). Anthropic generates most of its revenue through its consumption-based, pay-per-token “Claude” ecosystem. According to the filing, Anthropic now has roughly 12,000 enterprise customers spending $100k or more annually.

Anthropic’s Cash Hoard is Unprecedented

Before the S-1, Anthropic’s cash hoard was a big question mark for investors. Anthropic’s S-1 debunked this narrative. According to its S-1, Anthropic has an incredible $131.7B in cash, making it the third-largest total of cash and short-term investments among non-banking companies in the U.S. and only behind Alphabet (GOOGL) in the tech industry.

Debunking the Anthropic Cash Burn Claims

The biggest bearish narrative for leading AI labs like Anthropic is cash burn and debt concerns. Over the next decade, Anthropic has pledged roughly a half trillion in noncancelable compute infrastructure agreements with tech giants like Alphabet (GOOGL), SpaceX (SPCX), and Amazon (AMZN).

Anthropic’s IPO filing helped debunk the reckless cash-burn claims feared by many Wall Street analysts. Although young, Anthropic’s business is unbelievably efficient. The company surprisingly registered a small profit in Q2 2026. Meanwhile, because ~90% of Anthropic’s code is written by its own AI tool Claude, engineers can scale the business efficiently. In fact, it took Anthropic less than $10B in cash to generate a staggering $16.8B in quarterly revenue.

Which Public Companies Benefit from an Anthropic IPO?

Because Anthropic is a customer and they are the two largest stakeholders, Amazon and Google stand to benefit most if the Anthropic IPO lives up to Wall Street’s lofty expectations.

Anthropic is Already a Political Powerhouse

Two of the biggest risks for AI giants like Anthropic are regulatory read tape and safety. Anthropic is quelling these risks by becoming one of the biggest political powerhouses. For instance, Anthropic has become one of the largest Democratic donors. Meanwhile, the company is hedging its political bets by hiring numerous former Trump cabinet members.

Should you Buy the Anthropic IPO?

Based on the impressive S-1 filing, Anthropic has solidified itself as the leading AI frontier lab and the fastest-growing private company in tech history. Although Anthropic faces risks like any other company, its long-term prospects are undeniable, especially if it can maintain its current growth trajectory.

Nevertheless, timing is critical in the stock market, especially when considering IPOs. According to First Trust, the 20 largest U.S. IPOs by market cap average a 61.8%.1-year post-IPO drawdown

Beware of Anthropic’s Lock-Up Period

Anthropic’s unorthodox lock-up schedule is another reason not to rush into shares. Unlike most IPOs, some employees and top shareholders can sell up to 10% of their locked shares on day one. Meanwhile, another 35% of ANT shares will unlock for these investors after the company’s first public earnings report. This supply glut could pressure Anthropic shares over the first few months of trading.

Bottom Line

Anthropic’s S-1 filing confirms its dominance as the fastest-growing tech giant in history, pairing explosive enterprise revenue with a staggering $131.7 billion cash reserve. While its AI-driven operational efficiency and strategic political positioning bolster long-term prospects, investors should weigh potential supply pressure from early lock-up releases and historical post-IPO drawdowns before jumping in on day one.

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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).

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