Citizens Jmp Issues Pessimistic Forecast for Braze (NASDAQ:BRZE) Stock Price

Key Points

• Citizens Jmp cut its price target on Braze from $68 to $35 but kept a "market outperform" rating, a level that implies roughly 94% upside from the stock's current ~$18 price.
• Braze beat revenue estimates with $205.2M (+27.9% YoY) and management highlighted AI-driven growth, but the company missed EPS ($0.10 vs $0.14) and remains unprofitable with negative margins and ROE.
• Analyst and ownership picture: The consensus is a "Moderate Buy" (average price target $39.76, 22 Buys vs 1 Hold/1 Sell), while insiders have sold shares recently and institutional investors hold about 90% of the stock.

Braze (NASDAQ:BRZE - Get Free Report) had its target price cut by equities researchers at Citizens Jmp from $68.00 to $35.00 in a note issued to investors on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a "market outperform" rating on the stock. Citizens Jmp's price objective would suggest a potential upside of 94.23% from the stock's current price.

A number of other analysts have also commented on BRZE. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price objective on Braze from $55.00 to $45.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Braze from $39.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 10th. Piper Sandler lowered their price target on shares of Braze from $30.00 to $27.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on shares of Braze from $45.00 to $32.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 12th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $38.00 price objective on shares of Braze in a report on Wednesday, December 10th. Twenty-two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $39.76.

Braze Stock Performance

NASDAQ:BRZE opened at $18.02 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $2.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -16.38 and a beta of 1.08. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $19.95 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $26.57. Braze has a 52-week low of $15.26 and a 52-week high of $43.89.

Braze (NASDAQ:BRZE - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, March 24th. The company reported $0.10 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.14 by ($0.04). The firm had revenue of $205.17 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $198.23 million. Braze had a negative net margin of 16.85% and a negative return on equity of 17.87%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 27.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.12 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Braze will post -0.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, CAO Pankaj Malik sold 2,893 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $16.93, for a total value of $48,978.49. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 50,679 shares in the company, valued at $857,995.47. This trade represents a 5.40% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Astha Malik sold 14,049 shares of Braze stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.93, for a total transaction of $237,849.57. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 205,289 shares in the company, valued at $3,475,542.77. The trade was a 6.41% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 60,676 shares of company stock valued at $1,027,661. Insiders own 18.20% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Braze

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. NBC Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in Braze in the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd grew its holdings in shares of 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 during the period. Osaic Holdings Inc. increased its position in shares of Braze by 821.1% in the 2nd quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 1,575 shares of the company's stock valued at $44,000 after buying an additional 1,404 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP bought a new stake in shares of Braze in the 3rd quarter valued at $46,000. Finally, Clearstead Advisors LLC raised its stake in Braze by 58.2% during the 3rd quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 1,685 shares of the company's stock worth $48,000 after buying an additional 620 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 90.47% of the company's stock.

Braze News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Braze this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Revenue beat and bullish outlook: Braze posted revenue of $205.2M (+27.9% YoY), topping consensus and gave a strong revenue outlook that management tied to AI-driven product momentum and improved operating leverage. This is the main driver cited for the intraday rally. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst upgrade with a high price target: Canaccord Genuity increased its stance to a Buy and set a $43 target, signaling sizable upside from current levels and likely supporting demand. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Management emphasizes AI-driven growth on the earnings call: Executives highlighted AI features and customer traction as secular revenue drivers, which investors view as a multi-quarter growth catalyst. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Full call transcript and slide deck available for deeper diligence — useful for institutional buyers and analysts validating the growth narrative. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Short‑interest reporting appears anomalous in some feeds (entries showing 0 shares/NaN); treat those data points as unreliable until exchanges confirm.
• Negative Sentiment: EPS miss and continued unprofitability: Braze reported $0.10 EPS vs. $0.14 consensus and still shows negative net margin and ROE, which leaves the valuation sensitive to execution and margin improvement. Read More.

About Braze

Braze, Inc is a publicly traded software company NASDAQ: BRZE that offers a customer engagement platform designed to help brands build personalized relationships with their users. Founded in 2011 as Appboy by Bill Magnuson, Jon Hyman and Mark Ghermezian, the company adopted the Braze name in 2017 to underscore its focus on fostering strong connections between businesses and consumers. Its cloud-based platform consolidates messaging channels including push notifications, in-app messages, email and SMS, enabling companies to deliver timely, context-driven communications at scale.

The core functionality of Braze's platform centers on data-driven segmentation, customer journey orchestration and real-time analytics.

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