Confluent downgraded to Hold from Buy at Stifel

Stifel downgraded Confluent (CFLT) to Hold from Buy with a price target of $21, down from $30. The firm sees cloud growth headwinds in the coming quarters for the company due to slowing net new workload activity, “lackluster” new customer adds and an artificial intelligence customer that is moving from cloud to a self-managed platform. In addition, Confluent is accelerating investments in the partner channel, which, when combined with slower near-term revenue growth, is likely to limit margin and free cash flow upside, the analyst tells investors in a research note.