ServiceNow, Inc. (NYSE:NOW) Given Average Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" by Brokerages

Key Points

• ServiceNow has an average analyst recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from 43 brokerages (34 buy, 2 strong buy, 6 hold, 1 sell) with a mean 12‑month price target of about $146.65.
• The company beat Q1 revenue and EPS expectations — revenue $3.77B (up 22.1%) and EPS $0.97 — and highlighted accelerating AI adoption while closing the $7.75B Armis acquisition and deepening Google Cloud AI partnerships to strengthen its security and AI workflow offerings.
• Near‑term headwinds include cut price targets, softer margin/full‑year subscription guidance, geopolitical deal delays (≈75 bps revenue impact), and a ~30% rise in short interest, increasing potential downside and volatility despite longer‑term optimism.

ServiceNow, Inc. (NYSE:NOW - Get Free Report) has been assigned an average recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the forty-three ratings firms that are covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, six have assigned a hold recommendation, thirty-four have assigned a buy recommendation and two have given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $146.6450.

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. BNP Paribas Exane upgraded shares of ServiceNow from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $140.00 target price for the company in a research report on Monday, March 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on ServiceNow from $195.00 to $145.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday. Capital One Financial dropped their price target on ServiceNow from $158.00 to $113.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 16th. Truist Financial dropped their price target on ServiceNow from $125.00 to $120.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday. Finally, HSBC reduced their price target on ServiceNow from $226.00 to $171.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 16th.

Key Stories Impacting ServiceNow

Here are the key news stories impacting ServiceNow this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Company fundamentals and AI traction remain supportive — ServiceNow beat revenue/earnings views for Q1 and highlighted accelerating AI product adoption (Now Assist / AI agents) that management says will drive long‑term growth. ServiceNow Reports First Quarter 2026 Financial Results
• Positive Sentiment: Strategic moves boost the product and security stack — ServiceNow closed the $7.75B Armis acquisition (extends security capabilities) and deepened Google Cloud AI partnerships, which support cross‑sell and AI workflow positioning. Armis acquisition Google Cloud partnership
• Neutral Sentiment: Mixed analyst reactions — Several firms reaffirmed buy/overweight ratings (some even raised PTs), but many cut targets after the quarter; consensus still leaves upside from current levels, reflecting disagreement over near‑term vs. long‑term outlook. Analyst coverage
• Negative Sentiment: Geopolitical deal delays hit near‑term growth — Management said Middle East conflict delayed several large deal closings (≈75 bps revenue headwind in Q1), and that pushed investors to downgrade near‑term growth expectations. Middle East deal delays
• Negative Sentiment: Margin and guidance concerns — Investors focused on acquisition costs (Armis) and a softer margin outlook/full‑year subscription guidance that many viewed as disappointing, triggering the sector‑wide selloff. Margin/guidance coverage
• Negative Sentiment: Short interest jumped — Short interest rose ~30% in April to ~38.95M shares (~3.8% of shares), increasing potential downside pressure and volatility if bearish sentiment persists.

ServiceNow Price Performance

NYSE:NOW opened at $90.09 on Friday. The company has a 50-day moving average of $104.84 and a 200-day moving average of $137.81. The company has a market capitalization of $93.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 53.69, a PEG ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 1.01. ServiceNow has a 52 week low of $81.24 and a 52 week high of $211.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a current ratio of 0.84.

ServiceNow (NYSE:NOW - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 22nd. The information technology services provider reported $0.97 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.97. The company had revenue of $3.77 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.75 billion. ServiceNow had a net margin of 12.59% and a return on equity of 18.16%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 22.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.81 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that ServiceNow will post 2.49 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other ServiceNow news, Director Paul Edward Chamberlain sold 1,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $101.17, for a total transaction of $151,755.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 46,430 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,697,323.10. This represents a 3.13% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Paul Fipps sold 9,641 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.93, for a total value of $1,021,271.13. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 11,757 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,245,419.01. This trade represents a 45.06% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 16,237 shares of company stock valued at $1,697,162 in the last quarter. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On ServiceNow

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Root Financial Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of ServiceNow by 127.2% during the 1st quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 1,313 shares of the information technology services provider's stock worth $137,000 after purchasing an additional 735 shares in the last quarter. Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co. raised its stake in shares of ServiceNow by 178.9% during the 1st quarter. Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co. now owns 170,468 shares of the information technology services provider's stock worth $17,822,000 after purchasing an additional 109,341 shares in the last quarter. LB Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of ServiceNow during the 1st quarter worth approximately $627,000. Essex Financial Services Inc. increased its holdings in shares of ServiceNow by 43.9% during the 1st quarter. Essex Financial Services Inc. now owns 4,317 shares of the information technology services provider's stock worth $451,000 after acquiring an additional 1,316 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Secured Retirement Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of ServiceNow during the 1st quarter worth approximately $540,000. Institutional investors own 87.18% of the company's stock.

ServiceNow Company Profile

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.

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