Snowflake (SNOW) Stock: Is It a Buy Ahead of Q3 Earnings? Analysts Weigh In

TLDR

• Snowflake reports Q3 fiscal 2026 earnings on December 3, with Wall Street expecting EPS of $0.31 (up 55% year-over-year) and revenue of $1.18 billion (up 25%)
• SNOW stock has rallied 61% year-to-date, driven by AI boom, enterprise adoption, and consistent earnings beats
• Oppenheimer analyst raised price target to $295 from $275, citing strong customer demand and momentum in Snowpark and Cortex products
• Guggenheim analyst maintains Hold rating, noting AI monetization is still early and valuation appears expensive
• Options market prices in an 11% post-earnings move in either direction

Snowflake is gearing up to report third-quarter results for fiscal 2026 on December 3. The stock has been on a tear this year.

Shares are up about 61% year-to-date. The rally reflects growing demand for AI-driven data cloud solutions and enterprise adoption.

Snowflake Inc., SNOW

Wall Street analysts see earnings per share hitting $0.31. That would mark a 55% jump from the same period last year.

Revenue projections stand at $1.18 billion. This represents 25% growth year-over-year.

The company has consistently beaten Street expectations. That track record has kept investors optimistic heading into this report.

Bullish Case Gets Stronger

Oppenheimer analyst Ittai Kidron bumped his price target up to $295 from $275. He kept his Buy rating intact.

Kidron pointed to broad customer demand as a key driver. He also highlighted growing interest in newer products like Snowpark and Cortex.

The analyst noted rising AI and machine learning workloads. Large deal discussions are picking up too.

Kidron thinks Snowflake could deliver revenue growth around 29-30%. That would beat the consensus estimate of 25.6%.

He called guidance “beatable” and labeled Snowflake a “top pick.” The 5-star analyst sees healthy customer spending trends continuing.

The Cautious View

Not everyone shares that enthusiasm. Guggenheim analyst John DiFucci maintained his Hold rating on the stock.

DiFucci said partner checks came back positive. He believes Snowflake’s Q3 targets are achievable with some upside potential.

The company is expanding partnerships to grow its ecosystem. This supports the core data-warehousing business.

But DiFucci flagged concerns about timing and valuation. AI monetization is still in early stages, he noted.

The stock trades at premium levels. That makes him prefer waiting on the sidelines for now.

Options Market Signals Volatility

Traders are pricing in a sharp move after earnings. Options data suggests an expected swing of around 11% in either direction.

That level of volatility reflects uncertainty about whether the stock can maintain its momentum. A 60% year-to-date gain sets a high bar for future performance.

The options positioning shows investors are hedging both ways. Some expect another beat-and-raise quarter while others anticipate profit-taking.

AI workload growth remains a central theme for Snowflake. The company has positioned itself as a key player in helping enterprises manage data for AI applications.

Customer spending trends have stayed healthy according to analyst checks. Enterprise clients continue adopting Snowflake’s platform for data warehousing and analytics.

The partnership strategy is gaining traction. This helps Snowflake expand its reach without relying solely on direct sales.

Newer products like Snowpark and Cortex are seeing increased adoption. These tools let customers build and deploy AI models directly on Snowflake’s platform.

Large deal activity is picking up based on analyst reports. This could provide visibility into future revenue streams.

Wall Street expects earnings per share of $0.31 and revenue of $1.18 billion when Snowflake reports on December 3.

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