Braze (NASDAQ:BRZE) Stock Dropped to “Hold” by Mizuho

Mizuho cut shares of Braze (NASDAQ:BRZE) from a strong-buy rating to a hold rating in a report released on Wednesday morning,Zacks reports.

A number of other equities research analysts have also issued reports on the stock. Needham & Company LLC lowered shares of Braze from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday. Cantor Fitzgerald downgraded shares of Braze from an “overweight” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $47.50 price objective for the company. in a research note on Tuesday. Loop Capital downgraded shares of Braze from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $47.50 price objective for the company. in a research note on Tuesday. Wells Fargo & Company lowered shares of Braze from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $45.00 to $47.50 in a report on Tuesday. Finally, UBS Group cut Braze from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $47.50 target price on the stock. in a research note on Tuesday. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seventeen have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $43.95.

Braze Stock Up 0.4%

Shares of Braze stock opened at $45.86 on Wednesday. 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 52-week low of $15.26 and a 52-week high of $45.95. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $29.30 and its 200-day moving average price is $25.39. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -44.52 and a beta of 0.91.

Braze (NASDAQ:BRZE) last posted its quarterly 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. Braze had a negative net margin of 13.55% and a negative return on equity of 16.11%. The company had revenue of $227.23 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $220.27 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.15 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 26.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Braze has set its FY 2027 guidance at 0.640-0.650 EPS and its Q3 2027 guidance at 0.130-0.140 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Braze will post -0.70 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Braze

In related news, insider Astha Malik sold 33,656 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.65, for a total value of $930,588.40. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 278,138 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,690,515.70. This trade represents a 10.79% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CRO Edward Mcdonnell sold 29,732 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $31.38, for a total value of $932,990.16. Following the completion of the sale, the executive directly owned 409,630 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,854,189.40. The trade was a 6.77% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold a total of 498,568 shares of company stock worth $19,315,911 over the last quarter. 12.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Braze

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of BRZE. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its stake in shares of Braze by 13.3% during the 2nd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 4,692 shares of the company’s stock valued at $102,000 after purchasing an additional 552 shares in the last quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd increased its position in shares of Braze by 3,650.0% during the fourth quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 825 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 803 shares during the period. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI increased its position in shares of Braze by 4.0% during the first quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI now owns 27,287 shares of the company’s stock valued at $644,000 after buying an additional 1,062 shares during the period. Fifth Third Bancorp bought a new position in Braze in the first quarter worth about $27,000. Finally, Essential Partners LLC raised its stake in Braze by 109.8% in the first quarter. Essential Partners LLC now owns 2,174 shares of the company’s stock worth $51,000 after buying an additional 1,138 shares in the last quarter. 90.47% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Braze News Roundup

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.