Braze (NASDAQ:BRZE) Cut to Hold at Canaccord Genuity Group

Canaccord Genuity Group cut shares of Braze (NASDAQ:BRZE) from a strong-buy rating to a hold rating in a report published on Tuesday morning,Zacks reports.

Other equities analysts also recently issued reports about the company. Weiss Ratings raised Braze from a “sell (e+)” rating to a “sell (d-)” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Needham & Company LLC downgraded Braze from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Oppenheimer downgraded Braze from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Citigroup lowered Braze from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their target price for the company from $48.00 to $47.50 in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut Braze from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and increased their price target for the company from $45.00 to $47.50 in a research note on Tuesday. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seventeen have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $43.95.

Braze Stock Up 0.4%

NASDAQ:BRZE opened at $45.86 on Tuesday. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $29.30 and its 200-day simple moving average is $25.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a current ratio of 1.27. Braze has a fifty-two week low of $15.26 and a fifty-two week high of $45.95. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.21 billion, a P/E ratio of -44.52 and a beta of 0.91.

Braze (NASDAQ:BRZE) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, September 8th. The company reported $0.19 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.16 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $227.23 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $220.27 million. Braze had a negative net margin of 13.55% and a negative return on equity of 16.11%. Braze’s revenue for the quarter was up 26.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.15 earnings per share. Braze has set its FY 2027 guidance at 0.640-0.650 EPS and its Q3 2027 guidance at 0.130-0.140 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Braze will post -0.70 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Braze news, CRO Edward Mcdonnell sold 29,732 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $31.38, for a total value of $932,990.16. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive owned 409,630 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,854,189.40. This trade represents a 6.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CTO Jonathan Hyman sold 285,000 shares of Braze stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $45.33, for a total transaction of $12,919,050.00. Following the sale, the chief technology officer owned 848,219 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $38,449,767.27. The trade was a 25.15% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 498,568 shares of company stock valued at $19,315,911. Insiders own 12.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Braze

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its holdings in shares of Braze by 30.4% in the first quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 1,885,577 shares of the company’s stock valued at $44,518,000 after purchasing an additional 439,513 shares during the period. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Braze by 11.2% during the first quarter. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC now owns 1,370,986 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,369,000 after purchasing an additional 137,843 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP purchased a new stake in Braze in the first quarter valued at approximately $14,294,000. Glenmede Trust Co. NA boosted its position in Braze by 36.5% in the first quarter. Glenmede Trust Co. NA now owns 538,845 shares of the company’s stock valued at $12,722,000 after buying an additional 144,176 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its holdings in Braze by 24.0% in the 1st quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 530,231 shares of the company’s stock worth $12,519,000 after buying an additional 102,571 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.47% of the company’s stock.

Key Braze News

Here are the key news stories impacting Braze this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Salesforce’s proposed acquisition values Braze at approximately $5.66 billion and offers shareholders $47.50 per share, representing roughly a 58% premium to Braze’s pre-announcement price. The transaction gives investors a defined cash exit and supports the stock’s move toward the offer price. Salesforce Fuels AI Engine With $5.66B Braze Buyout
• Positive Sentiment: UBS described the acquisition as a strategic fit at a reasonable price, noting that Braze would add a faster-growing marketing-technology platform to Salesforce’s portfolio and strengthen its real-time data and AI offerings. Salesforce’s Braze deal wins UBS backing
• Positive Sentiment: Trading activity also reflects bullish sentiment: investors purchased a high volume of Braze call options, while a separate analysis argued that the stock could remain undervalued despite its approximately 80% run. Stock Traders Buy High Volume of Braze Call Options
• Neutral Sentiment: DA Davidson lowered its rating from Buy to Hold, and Citigroup cut its rating from Buy to Neutral. However, both firms set price targets of $47.50, leaving limited upside but broadly aligning with Salesforce’s offer.
• Neutral Sentiment: The deal remains subject to shareholder approval and antitrust review, with completion expected in Salesforce’s fiscal 2028. The current price below $47.50 reflects some uncertainty about closing and timing.
• Negative Sentiment: Several law firms are investigating whether the proposed price and sale process adequately protect Braze shareholders. These inquiries do not currently change the offer but could create legal or deal-completion risks. Braze Investor Alert
• Negative Sentiment: CTO Jonathan Hyman sold a combined 295,000 shares under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan. Although the sales were scheduled and he retains a substantial stake, the transactions may weigh modestly on sentiment after the recent rally.

Braze Company Profile

Braze, Inc is a customer engagement software company that provides a platform for businesses to build, manage and measure personalized interactions with consumers. Its technology is designed to help brands communicate with customers across digital channels, including mobile applications, websites, email, SMS and messaging services.

The Braze platform supports customer data collection and segmentation, campaign creation, journey orchestration, experimentation and engagement analytics. Its capabilities include in-app and web messaging, push notifications, email marketing, content personalization and automated lifecycle campaigns.