Adams Diversified Equity Fund Inc. Acquires New Stake in ServiceNow, Inc. $NOW

Key Points

• Adams Diversified Equity Fund acquired 125,200 ServiceNow shares worth approximately $16.8 million, while other institutional investors also increased their positions. Institutions collectively own 87.18% of the stock.
• Analyst sentiment remains broadly positive: ServiceNow has a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $153.90, with several firms recently raising targets to $170.
• ServiceNow’s AI momentum is supporting investor optimism, but its high valuation and cash-flow concerns create downside risk. The upcoming quarterly earnings report is viewed as the next major catalyst.

Adams Diversified Equity Fund Inc. bought a new stake in ServiceNow, Inc. (NYSE:NOW - Free Report) during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 125,200 shares of the information technology services provider's stock, valued at approximately $16,778,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in NOW. Boothe Investment Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of ServiceNow by 3.9% in the 3rd quarter. Boothe Investment Group Inc. now owns 102,286 shares of the information technology services provider's stock valued at $13,707,000 after acquiring an additional 3,881 shares during the last quarter. Powell Investment Advisors LLC bought a new position in ServiceNow during the third quarter worth $269,000. E. Ohman J or Asset Management AB lifted its stake in ServiceNow by 2.0% during the third quarter. E. Ohman J or Asset Management AB now owns 436,578 shares of the information technology services provider's stock worth $58,506,000 after purchasing an additional 8,742 shares during the last quarter. Lmcg Investments LLC lifted its stake in ServiceNow by 916.3% during the third quarter. Lmcg Investments LLC now owns 50,836 shares of the information technology services provider's stock worth $6,813,000 after purchasing an additional 45,834 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Crescent Grove Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in ServiceNow by 50.6% in the third quarter. Crescent Grove Advisors LLC now owns 5,522 shares of the information technology services provider's stock worth $740,000 after purchasing an additional 1,855 shares during the period. 87.18% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at ServiceNow

In other ServiceNow news, Director Paul Chamberlain sold 2,700 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $135.50, for a total transaction of $365,850.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 43,990 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,960,645. The trade was a 5.78% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Paul Fipps sold 2,034 shares of the company's 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 completion of the transaction, the insider owned 18,305 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,706,760.35. This trade represents a 10.00% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 14,081 shares of company stock worth $1,937,904 in the last ninety days. 0.34% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have weighed in on NOW. Citigroup reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $170.00 target price (up from $154.00) on shares of ServiceNow in a research note on Wednesday, October 14th. UBS Group set a $165.00 price target on shares of ServiceNow in a research report on Monday. Argus lifted their price target on shares of ServiceNow from $134.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 7th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of ServiceNow in a research report on Tuesday, October 13th. Finally, Mizuho set a $170.00 price objective on shares of ServiceNow and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 15th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-six have assigned a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $153.90.

More ServiceNow News

Here are the key news stories impacting ServiceNow this week:

• Positive Sentiment: AI partnership expands product reach: ServiceNow and NVIDIA launched Arc, an enterprise AI agent designed to plan tasks and verify its work. The product reinforces ServiceNow’s positioning as an AI orchestration and workflow platform. ServiceNow and Nvidia launch Arc
• Positive Sentiment: AI demand is driving investor optimism: ServiceNow’s AI-related contract value reportedly exceeded $1 billion, while the stock has gained substantially over the past three months. The company’s shift toward usage-based “Assists” could increase revenue potential as customers deploy more AI agents. ServiceNow rallies as AI contract value tops $1 billion
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst support remains strong: Multiple firms raised their price targets ahead of earnings, including a Street-high $266 target from Bernstein. Polen Capital also highlighted ServiceNow as a company positioned to benefit from AI rather than suffer disruption. ServiceNow earnings outlook
• Neutral Sentiment: Earnings are the next catalyst: Investors are focused on the October 28 quarterly report. ServiceNow previously delivered revenue growth of 24% and an earnings beat, but current previews anticipate a possible single-digit earnings decline, raising the bar for another positive surprise. ServiceNow quarterly earnings preview
• Neutral Sentiment: Defense exposure received visibility: ServiceNow’s global defense and national security executive discussed the company’s activities at the AUSA 2026 conference, though the report did not disclose a material contract or financial impact. AUSA ServiceNow defense interview
• Negative Sentiment: Cash-flow and valuation concerns remain: Commentary warns that ServiceNow may need stronger cash flow to fund its AI expansion. With the shares trading at a high earnings multiple after a sharp run-up, any slowdown or weaker outlook could trigger profit-taking. ServiceNow cash-flow concerns
• Negative Sentiment: One notable bearish signal: Zacks Research downgraded ServiceNow from “hold” to “strong sell,” adding caution despite the broader analyst optimism. Zacks Research ratings

ServiceNow Price Performance

Shares of NYSE NOW opened at $156.85 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 0.70 and a quick ratio of 0.70. The firm has a market capitalization of $162.18 billion, a PE ratio of 80.25, a P/E/G ratio of 2.81 and a beta of 0.99. ServiceNow, Inc. has a 1-year low of $81.24 and a 1-year high of $192.97. The business's fifty day moving average price is $137.17 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $115.08.

ServiceNow (NYSE:NOW - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The information technology services provider reported $0.90 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.86 by $0.04. ServiceNow had a net margin of 11.34% and a return on equity of 16.45%. The company had revenue of $3.99 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.93 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.81 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 24.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts expect that ServiceNow, Inc. will post 2.22 EPS for the current year.

ServiceNow Profile

ServiceNow, Inc provides cloud-based software designed to help organizations digitize, automate and manage enterprise workflows. Its Now Platform connects people, processes and systems across departments, enabling customers to manage work through a centralized technology environment.

The company's products and services address a range of business needs, including information technology service management, IT operations management, customer service management, human resources service delivery, security operations, risk and compliance, and application development.

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