ServiceNow (NYSE:NOW) Stock Price Up 7.4% - Here's Why

Key Points

• ServiceNow shares jumped 7.4% to $89.13 on Monday with trading volume of about 31.37M shares (roughly 60% above normal), after closing at $83.00 the prior session.
• Analysts remain generally positive with a MarketBeat consensus of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $186.30, even as several firms trimmed targets (Goldman to $188, Evercore to $175) and Benchmark started coverage at $125.
• ServiceNow beat quarterly estimates (EPS $0.92 vs. $0.89; revenue $3.57B vs. $3.53B) with revenue up 20.7% YoY, but the stock trades well below its 50-day ($107.27) and 200-day ($143.49) moving averages and insiders have recently sold shares.

ServiceNow, Inc. (NYSE:NOW - Get Free Report)'s share price rose 7.4% during trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $89.24 and last traded at $89.1320. Approximately 31,369,278 shares were traded during trading, an increase of 60% from the average daily volume of 19,635,908 shares. The stock had previously closed at $83.00.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

NOW has been the subject of a number of research reports. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their target price on ServiceNow from $216.00 to $188.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 7th. Argus raised ServiceNow to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. Evercore reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $175.00 target price (down from $225.00) on shares of ServiceNow in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $200.00 price target on shares of ServiceNow in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Finally, Benchmark assumed coverage on ServiceNow in a report on Wednesday, April 1st. They issued a "buy" rating and a $125.00 price target for the company. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-three have issued a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $186.30.

ServiceNow Price Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $92.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 53.44, a P/E/G ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 1.01. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $107.27 and a 200-day simple moving average of $143.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a current ratio of 1.00 and a quick ratio of 1.00.

ServiceNow (NYSE:NOW - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 28th. The information technology services provider reported $0.92 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.89 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $3.57 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.53 billion. ServiceNow had a return on equity of 18.54% and a net margin of 13.16%.The business's revenue was up 20.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.73 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that ServiceNow, Inc. will post 8.93 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Paul Fipps sold 3,696 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $101.77, for a total value of $376,141.92. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 8,061 shares in the company, valued at $820,367.97. The trade was a 31.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Paul Edward Chamberlain sold 1,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $101.17, for a total value of $151,755.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 46,430 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,697,323.10. This trade represents a 3.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 16,237 shares of company stock worth $1,697,162 over the last three months. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in NOW. IAG Wealth Partners LLC raised its stake in ServiceNow by 200.0% in the 3rd quarter. IAG Wealth Partners LLC now owns 27 shares of the information technology services provider's stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 18 shares during the last quarter. Noble Wealth Management PBC raised its stake in ServiceNow by 400.0% in the 4th quarter. Noble Wealth Management PBC now owns 160 shares of the information technology services provider's stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 128 shares during the last quarter. Millstone Evans Group LLC raised its stake in ServiceNow by 400.0% in the 4th quarter. Millstone Evans Group LLC now owns 165 shares of the information technology services provider's stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 132 shares during the last quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC raised 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 valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 135 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Blueline Advisors LLC acquired a new position in ServiceNow in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. 87.18% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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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