Traders Purchase High Volume of ServiceNow Call Options (NYSE:NOW)

ServiceNow, Inc. (NYSE:NOW) was the recipient of some unusual options trading on Thursday. Stock traders acquired 168,241 call options on the stock. This is an increase of approximately 37% compared to the average volume of 122,717 call options.

ServiceNow Stock Up 14.6%

Shares of ServiceNow stock opened at $124.56 on Friday. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $98.05 and its 200 day simple moving average is $123.74. ServiceNow has a 52-week low of $81.24 and a 52-week high of $211.48. The firm has a market cap of $128.42 billion, a PE ratio of 74.23, a P/E/G ratio of 1.80 and a beta of 0.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a current ratio of 0.84.

ServiceNow (NYSE:NOW) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The information technology services provider reported $0.97 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.97. ServiceNow had a return on equity of 18.16% and a net margin of 12.59%.The business had revenue of $3.77 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.75 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.81 EPS. ServiceNow’s revenue for the quarter was up 22.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that ServiceNow will post 2.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Key Headlines Impacting ServiceNow

Here are the key news stories impacting ServiceNow this week:

• Positive Sentiment: ServiceNow is benefiting from a sector-wide rebound in software stocks after Snowflake’s strong earnings suggested AI is more of an opportunity than a threat for enterprise platforms. ServiceNow (NOW) Stock Trades Up, Here Is Why
• Positive Sentiment: Investors are also responding to ServiceNow’s expanding AI narrative, including its position as a key platform for agentic AI workflows and enterprise automation. ServiceNow’s stock soars toward historic month as AI fears fade across software
• Positive Sentiment: Coverage calling ServiceNow a buy at current levels and setting a higher price target is adding to the bullish sentiment around the stock’s valuation reset. Buy, Hold, or Sell: Is This Cloud Automation Juggernaut a Steal Following Its Massive Valuation Reset?
• Positive Sentiment: Momentum from partnerships and AI-related headlines, including Wipro’s expanded ServiceNow collaboration, is reinforcing the company’s relevance in enterprise automation. Wipro stock gains 4%: can its ServiceNow tie-up drive growth?
• Neutral Sentiment: Unusually high options activity suggests traders are positioning for continued volatility in ServiceNow shares. ServiceNow Sees Unusually High Options Volume (NYSE:NOW)

Insider Buying and Selling

In other ServiceNow news, insider Paul Fipps sold 1,048 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.51, for a total value of $103,238.48. Following the transaction, the insider owned 12,072 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,189,212.72. This represents a 7.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, Director Anita M. Sands sold 16,445 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.14, for a total value of $1,482,352.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 30,090 shares in the company, valued at $2,712,312.60. The trade was a 35.34% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last three months, insiders sold 28,071 shares of company stock worth $2,529,956. Corporate insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of NOW. Brighton Jones LLC grew its stake in ServiceNow by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 2,753 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $2,919,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC grew its stake in ServiceNow by 4.2% in the second quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 837 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $861,000 after purchasing an additional 34 shares in the last quarter. United Bank grew its stake in ServiceNow by 15.5% in the second quarter. United Bank now owns 1,519 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $1,562,000 after purchasing an additional 204 shares in the last quarter. Riggs Asset Managment Co. Inc. grew its stake in ServiceNow by 2.2% in the second quarter. Riggs Asset Managment Co. Inc. now owns 1,922 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $1,976,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nebula Research & Development LLC grew its stake in ServiceNow by 205.1% in the second quarter. Nebula Research & Development LLC now owns 906 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $931,000 after purchasing an additional 609 shares in the last quarter. 87.18% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently commented on NOW. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price target on ServiceNow from $120.00 to $115.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 23rd. Cantor Fitzgerald dropped their price target on ServiceNow to $122.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 23rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price target on ServiceNow from $180.00 to $135.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 16th. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $121.00 price target on shares of ServiceNow in a research report on Tuesday, May 5th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on ServiceNow from $185.00 to $160.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 23rd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-five have assigned a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $141.85.

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.