Needham Reiterates Buy: CRM $400 PT, SEI $98 PT

For equity investors tracking analyst conviction, two Buy reiterations from Needham this week provide a data-rich comparison of growth and value. Salesforce's $400 target sits 50% above the consensus average of $266.50, while Solaris's $98 target is only 12% above its $87.17 consensus. The gap between current prices and targets — 54% for CRM and 78% for SEI — masks very different multiples and balance sheets.

Needham & Company LLC issued separate research notes on Wednesday, September 2, 2026, reiterating Buy ratings on Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) and Solaris Energy Infrastructure (NYSE:SEI). The firm maintained a $400.00 price target on Salesforce and a $98.00 price target on Solaris, according to Benzinga reports carried by financial aggregators. At the time of the notes, Salesforce opened at $259.39 and Solaris opened at $55.08, implying potential upside of roughly 54% and 78% respectively. The simultaneous reiterations are notable because they cover two very different market capitalizations and financial profiles — a $213.48 billion enterprise software giant and a $4.22 billion energy infrastructure operator.

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Salesforce's $400 target sits 50% above the consensus average of $266.50, while Solaris's $98 target is only 12% above its $87.17 consensus.

Salesforce's rating backdrop shows a wide dispersion of analyst opinions. Needham's $400 target is far above the consensus average target of $266.50 and the stock's 52-week high of $269.11; it implies a valuation that would require double-digit percentage appreciation beyond the prior peak. Meanwhile, the broader analyst community remains moderate: 27 Buy ratings, 15 Hold ratings, and 3 Sell ratings yield a consensus Moderate Buy, but recent actions include downgrades from Wall Street Zen (to hold on August 1) and Phillip Securities (to hold on June 29, cutting its target from $253 to $166). DA Davidson also holds a neutral rating with a $200 target, while B. Riley raised its target from $205 to $240 in May. The stock's technicals — a 50-day simple moving average of $191.88 and 200-day of $185.00 — show that CRM's opening price of $259.39 has moved well above both, indicating positive momentum, though its current ratio of 0.84 and debt-to-equity of 1.02 add balance-sheet risk.

Solaris Energy Infrastructure presents a different picture. Needham's $98 target is slightly above the consensus average target of $87.17, with 10 Buy ratings, 1 Hold, and 1 Sell. The stock's 52-week range of $24.57 to $86.19 means it opened at $55.08, below both its 50-day moving average of $59.61 and 200-day moving average of $63.43. That technical weakness contrasts with the strong upside implied by the target. Key metrics include a market cap of $4.22 billion, a high P/E ratio of 64.80, and a beta of 1.25, signaling earnings volatility. The company's current ratio of 4.12 and quick ratio of 4.03 are very strong on liquidity, but its debt-to-equity ratio of 2.23 is high, reflecting leveraged energy infrastructure operations. Notably, Wall Street Zen downgraded SEI to strong sell on August 8, while Wells Fargo upgraded it to overweight on August 3 with a reduced target of $73, and Stifel set a $98 target on August 7. This mix of strong buy and strong sell ratings within days underscores genuine uncertainty about the company's near-term trajectory.