ServiceNow (NYSE:NOW) Stock Price Up 6.8% – Still a Buy?

ServiceNow, Inc. (NYSE:NOW) shot up 6.8% on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $146.98 and last traded at $146.03. 17,359,831 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 26% from the average session volume of 23,356,424 shares. The stock had previously closed at $136.72.

Key Stories Impacting ServiceNow

Here are the key news stories impacting ServiceNow this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Enterprise AI software stocks are broadly higher after Palantir’s expanded PwC alliance helped counter a bearish short thesis, lifting sentiment across peers including ServiceNow and Salesforce. Palantir, ServiceNow and Salesforce Market Update
• Positive Sentiment: ServiceNow’s collaboration with Aramco Digital is expected to expand adoption of its AI-powered workflows across Aramco’s operations and potentially more than 50 countries, strengthening the company’s enterprise AI positioning against Salesforce and Microsoft. ServiceNow and Aramco Digital Collaboration
• Positive Sentiment: Partners are increasingly building applications on the ServiceNow AI Platform. Pricefx’s AI-powered pricing and negotiation application illustrates how ServiceNow could become a distribution layer for enterprise AI and deepen its role in commercial workflows. ServiceNow as an Enterprise AI Commerce Platform
• Neutral Sentiment: After the sharp monthly rebound, investors are debating whether to add to positions or lock in gains. The broader software-sector recovery reflects reduced fears of an AI-driven “SaaSpocalypse,” but the discussion highlights heightened expectations for ServiceNow. ServiceNow Rally and Valuation Discussion
• Neutral Sentiment: ServiceNow’s prior quarter remains a fundamental support, with revenue up 24% year over year and EPS and revenue exceeding analyst estimates. However, analyst targets near the current trading range and a high earnings multiple leave less room for execution disappointments.
• Negative Sentiment: Reports that attackers may escape the sandbox in the ServiceNow AI Platform raise cybersecurity and product-trust concerns. The potential vulnerability could pressure sentiment if ServiceNow must provide a broad remediation or disclose customer exposure. ServiceNow AI Platform Sandbox Vulnerability
• Negative Sentiment: Recent insider sales by executives Jacqueline Canney and Paul Fipps may weigh on sentiment after the rally, although Canney’s transaction was made under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan and therefore is not necessarily a discretionary bearish signal. ServiceNow Insider Sales

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently commented on the company. Truist Financial increased their price objective on ServiceNow from $120.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. CLSA assumed coverage on ServiceNow in a report on Monday, July 20th. They set an “underperform” rating and a $72.00 price target for the company. Evercore reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $160.00 price target on shares of ServiceNow in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. Cantor Fitzgerald raised their price objective on ServiceNow from $122.00 to $141.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, July 20th. Finally, Citic Securities cut their price objective on shares of ServiceNow from $168.00 to $140.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-six have assigned a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $144.24.

ServiceNow Price Performance

The company has a current ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 0.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. The business’s fifty day moving average is $115.22 and its 200 day moving average is $107.44. The company has a market cap of $151.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 91.27, a PEG ratio of 2.60 and a beta of 0.97.

ServiceNow (NYSE:NOW) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 22nd. The information technology services provider reported $0.90 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.86 by $0.04. ServiceNow had a return on equity of 16.45% and a net margin of 11.34%.The business had revenue of $3.99 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.93 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.81 earnings per share. ServiceNow’s revenue was up 24.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that ServiceNow, Inc. will post 2.24 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Paul Chamberlain sold 2,700 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $135.50, for a total value of $365,850.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 43,990 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,960,645. The trade was a 5.78% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Paul Fipps sold 2,034 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $147.87, for a total transaction of $300,767.58. Following the transaction, the insider owned 18,305 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,706,760.35. This represents a 10.00% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 14,081 shares of company stock valued at $1,937,904. 0.34% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Wealth Watch Advisors INC purchased a new position in shares of ServiceNow during the third quarter worth approximately $29,000. Kelleher Financial Advisors bought a new stake in shares of ServiceNow in the 3rd quarter valued at about $50,000. Pin Oak Investment Advisors Inc. grew its position in ServiceNow by 20.7% during the 3rd quarter. Pin Oak Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 134 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $123,000 after acquiring an additional 23 shares during the last quarter. Jupiter Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in ServiceNow in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $154,000. Finally, CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC increased its stake in ServiceNow by 540.0% in the 4th quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 160 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 135 shares during the period. 87.18% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About ServiceNow

ServiceNow (NYSE: NOW) is a cloud computing company that builds enterprise software to manage digital workflows and automate business processes. Its offerings are designed to replace manual work and legacy systems with cloud-based, service-oriented applications that support IT operations, customer service, human resources, security response and other enterprise functions.

The company’s flagship product family is the Now Platform, a suite of subscription software and platform services that includes IT Service Management (ITSM), IT Operations Management (ITOM), IT Business Management (ITBM), Customer Service Management (CSM), HR Service Delivery, Security Operations and Asset Management.