Snowflake initiated with a Neutral at BofA

BofA initiated coverage of Snowflake with a Neutral rating and $195 price target. While BofA feels Snowflake is well-positioned to capture further share of the $132B data management market, Snowflake’s pay-as-you-go and consumption pricing model is facing headwinds that are still weighing on growth in the company’s core data warehouse business, the analyst tells investors in a research note. Snowflake’s unique pricing structure provides a key competitive advantage, but also presents a higher degree of exposure to a still challenging IT spending environment, the firm argues, adding that near-term upside is largely priced into shares.