TD Cowen Reaffirms "Buy" Rating for ServiceNow (NYSE:NOW)

Key Points

• TD Cowen reaffirmed its "Buy" rating on ServiceNow with a $140 price target, implying about a 65% upside from the prior close.
• Shares plunged about 17.7% to $84.87 on heavy volume after Q1 commentary and analyst price‑target cuts, as investors reacted to near‑term margin pressure and increased short interest.
• Operationally, Q1 EPS met expectations while revenue rose 22.1% to $3.77 billion, and management cited AI-driven demand and raised subscription revenue guidance even as the Armis acquisition completed and is expected to weigh on near‑term margins.

ServiceNow (NYSE:NOW - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "buy" rating reaffirmed by equities researchers at TD Cowen in a report issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. They presently have a $140.00 target price on the information technology services provider's stock. TD Cowen's price objective indicates a potential upside of 64.96% from the stock's previous close.

Several other brokerages also recently issued reports on NOW. Evercore lowered their price objective on shares of ServiceNow from $175.00 to $140.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday. Citigroup lowered their price objective on shares of ServiceNow from $177.00 to $154.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday. UBS Group set a $150.00 price objective on shares of ServiceNow in a research report on Thursday. Barclays assumed coverage on shares of ServiceNow in a research report on Thursday. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $132.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Benchmark assumed coverage on shares of ServiceNow in a research report on Wednesday, April 1st. They issued a "buy" rating and a $125.00 price objective for the company. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-four have issued a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, ServiceNow currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $150.18.

ServiceNow Trading Down 17.7%

NYSE NOW traded down $18.20 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $84.87. The company's stock had a trading volume of 52,331,081 shares, compared to its average volume of 20,477,141. ServiceNow has a 52-week low of $81.24 and a 52-week high of $211.48. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $105.55 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $138.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a current ratio of 1.00 and a quick ratio of 1.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $87.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 50.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 1.01.

ServiceNow (NYSE:NOW - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 22nd. The information technology services provider reported $0.97 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.97. ServiceNow had a net margin of 13.16% and a return on equity of 18.54%. The company had revenue of $3.77 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.75 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $4.04 earnings per share. ServiceNow's revenue for the quarter was up 22.1% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that ServiceNow will post 2.49 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Kevin Thomas Mcbride sold 1,400 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.71, for a total transaction of $147,994.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 26,314 shares in the company, valued at $2,781,652.94. This trade represents a 5.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Paul Fipps sold 9,641 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction 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 owned 11,757 shares in the company, valued at $1,245,419.01. This trade represents a 45.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 16,237 shares of company stock worth $1,697,162 over the last ninety days. 0.34% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On ServiceNow

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. waypoint wealth counsel lifted its stake in ServiceNow by 9.1% during the first quarter. waypoint wealth counsel now owns 4,033 shares of the information technology services provider's stock worth $422,000 after purchasing an additional 338 shares during the last quarter. North Star Investment Management Corp. lifted its stake in ServiceNow by 1,016.0% during the first quarter. North Star Investment Management Corp. now owns 1,116 shares of the information technology services provider's stock worth $117,000 after purchasing an additional 1,016 shares during the last quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC lifted its stake in ServiceNow by 41.6% during the first quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 3,119 shares of the information technology services provider's stock worth $326,000 after purchasing an additional 916 shares during the last quarter. Portus Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in ServiceNow during the first quarter worth $53,000. Finally, Apollon Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in ServiceNow by 25.2% during the first quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC now owns 20,555 shares of the information technology services provider's stock worth $2,149,000 after purchasing an additional 4,143 shares during the last quarter. 87.18% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

More ServiceNow News

Here are the key news stories impacting ServiceNow this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q1 results beat revenue expectations and showed AI-driven growth; management raised annual subscription revenue guidance, underscoring demand for Now Assist and other AI products. ServiceNow Reports First Quarter 2026 Financial Results
• Positive Sentiment: CEO Bill McDermott publicly reiterated strong AI product sales and confidence that AI will drive durable revenue—an important narrative that supports longer‑term growth expectations. Fortune: Investors continue to punish ServiceNow despite strong earnings and CEO forecast
• Positive Sentiment: ServiceNow completed the Armis acquisition, expanding security, OT/IoT and cyber‑exposure capabilities—strategic for cross‑sell and AI/security use cases. (Longer‑term product/market benefit.) InsiderMonkey: ServiceNow completes Armis acquisition
• Neutral Sentiment: Some sell‑side firms still maintain Outperform/Buy ratings (and a few raised targets, e.g., Bernstein), reflecting mixed analyst views—bulls cite AI adoption, bears focus on near‑term execution risks. MarketScreener: Bernstein raises price target
• Negative Sentiment: ServiceNow warned the Armis deal will pressure margins (~75 bps full‑year; ~125 bps in Q2) and acquisition integration costs weigh on near‑term profitability—investors reacted negatively to the margin hit. WSJ: Armis deal will weigh on margins
• Negative Sentiment: Management flagged deal delays in the Middle East tied to the Iran conflict (~75 bps headwind to subscription revenue in Q1) — a tangible, near‑term revenue drag that spooked investors. Yahoo Finance: Stock tumbles as war in Iran impacts sales growth
• Negative Sentiment: Wall of analyst price‑target cuts and downward adjustments across major banks amplified selling pressure; many firms trimmed targets despite keeping Buy/Outperform ratings. Benzinga: Analysts cut forecasts after Q1
• Negative Sentiment: Sector‑wide AI disruption fears and rising short interest among hedge funds intensified downside volatility; traders treated the quarter as proof of near‑term execution risk despite longer‑term AI thesis. Reuters: ServiceNow draws hedge fund shorts

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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