Braze (NASDAQ:BRZE) Stock Gets Downgrade from Mizuho

Braze (NASDAQ:BRZE) was downgraded by investment analysts at Mizuho from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report issued on Wednesday, Zacks reports.

A number of other research firms have also recently commented on BRZE. Stifel Nicolaus restated a “hold” rating and set a $47.50 target price (up from $35.00) on shares of Braze in a research report on Tuesday. Raymond James Financial cut Braze from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday. Canaccord Genuity Group set a $47.50 price target on Braze in a research report on Tuesday. Weiss Ratings upgraded Braze from a “sell (e+)” rating to a “sell (d-)” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $38.00 price objective on shares of Braze in a report on Wednesday, September 9th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seventeen have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $43.95.

Braze Stock Up 0.4%

BRZE stock opened at $45.86 on Wednesday. Braze has a one year low of $15.26 and a one year high of $45.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a current ratio of 1.27. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $29.30 and its 200 day moving average is $25.39. The firm has a market cap of $5.21 billion, a PE ratio of -44.52 and a beta of 0.91.

Braze (NASDAQ:BRZE) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, September 8th. The company reported $0.19 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 business had revenue of $227.23 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $220.27 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.15 earnings per share. The company’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. On average, research analysts forecast that Braze will post -0.70 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Braze

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Braze

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its stake in Braze by 13.3% during the second quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 4,692 shares of the company’s stock worth $102,000 after buying an additional 552 shares during the last quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd grew its holdings in Braze by 3,650.0% in the 4th 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 in the last quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI grew its holdings in Braze by 4.0% in the 1st 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 in the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp purchased a new stake in Braze in the 1st quarter valued at $27,000. Finally, Essential Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of Braze by 109.8% in the 1st quarter. Essential Partners LLC now owns 2,174 shares of the company’s stock worth $51,000 after acquiring an additional 1,138 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.47% of the company’s stock.

More 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.