Analyst Update: Salesforce, CF Industries, Maxwell Tech

Analysts are weighing in today on cloud computing focus Salesforce.com, inc. (NYSE:CRM), fertilizer fanatic CF Industries Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:CF), and energy storage player Maxwell Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ:MXWL). Here's a quick look at today's brokerage notes on CRM, CF, and MXWL.

• With the company's 2015 investor session kicking off, CRM is 0.7% higher today at $73.91, after Exane BNP Paribas initiated coverage with a "neutral" rating, but also an $81 price target -- representing record-high territory. Salesforce.com, inc. is now 28% higher year-over-year, and option traders have continued to buy to open calls over puts. In fact, at 2.11, the security's 50-day International Securities Exchange (ISE), Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX) call/put volume ratio is only 4 percentage points from an annual bullish high.


• CF has been buzzing higher for over two years now, and hit a record high of $323.98 just last Thursday. Moreover, the shares have outpaced the S&P 500 Index (SPX) by more than 12 percentage points in the past two months. CLSA apparently doesn't care, as it reduced its outlook on the stock to "sell." Now, five of 12 brokerage firms rate CF Industries Holdings, Inc. a "hold" or worse. Elsewhere, the sentiment in the stock's options arena is bullish, with traders buying to open 1.35 calls for every put in the past 50 sessions -- a ratio that ranks in the 84th annual percentile.


• MXWL is booming today, adding 7.3% to trade at $6.48, thanks to an upgrade to "outperform" from "market perform" at Northland Securities. The stock was in dire need of good news, with the shares down more than 65% year-over-year coming into today. We'll see if this does anything to scare away short sellers, as over one-fifth of Maxwell Technologies Inc.'s float is sold short, representing more than three weeks' worth of trading, at its normal trading pace.