Traders Buy Large Volume of Put Options on ServiceNow (NYSE:NOW)

ServiceNow, Inc. (NYSE:NOW) was the recipient of some unusual options trading activity on Thursday. Traders acquired 105,381 put options on the stock. This represents an increase of approximately 69% compared to the typical volume of 62,339 put options.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently commented on NOW shares. Oppenheimer reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $175.00 price objective (down previously from $200.00) on shares of ServiceNow in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. DZ Bank upgraded shares of ServiceNow to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, December 18th. Robert W. Baird set a $175.00 price target on shares of ServiceNow in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. KeyCorp cut their price objective on ServiceNow from $155.00 to $115.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Finally, Mizuho decreased their target price on ServiceNow from $210.00 to $190.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-two have issued a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, ServiceNow has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $192.06.

ServiceNow Price Performance

Shares of NYSE NOW opened at $104.22 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $131.62 and its 200-day simple moving average is $161.93. The firm has a market capitalization of $109.02 billion, a PE ratio of 62.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 0.97. ServiceNow has a fifty-two week low of $98.00 and a fifty-two week high of $211.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a current ratio of 1.00.

ServiceNow (NYSE:NOW) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The information technology services provider reported $0.92 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.89 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $3.57 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.53 billion. ServiceNow had a net margin of 13.16% and a return on equity of 18.54%. The firm’s revenue was up 20.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.73 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that ServiceNow will post 8.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other ServiceNow news, CFO Gina Mastantuono sold 2,075 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, December 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.00, for a total transaction of $352,750.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 61,140 shares in the company, valued at $10,393,800. This represents a 3.28% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Kevin Thomas Mcbride sold 1,400 shares of ServiceNow stock in a transaction on Friday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $105.71, for a total value of $147,994.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 26,314 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,781,652.94. The trade was a 5.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 19,526 shares of company stock valued at $2,467,814 over the last quarter. 0.34% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On ServiceNow

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of NOW. Brady Martz Wealth Solutions LLC increased its position in ServiceNow by 1.3% during the third quarter. Brady Martz Wealth Solutions LLC now owns 842 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $775,000 after buying an additional 11 shares during the period. Magnus Financial Group LLC grew its position in shares of ServiceNow by 1.9% during the third quarter. Magnus Financial Group LLC now owns 589 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $542,000 after acquiring an additional 11 shares during the last quarter. Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC increased its holdings in shares of ServiceNow by 2.5% in the 3rd quarter. Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC now owns 453 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $417,000 after acquiring an additional 11 shares during the period. Bay Colony Advisory Group Inc d b a Bay Colony Advisors raised its position in ServiceNow by 2.1% in the 2nd quarter. Bay Colony Advisory Group Inc d b a Bay Colony Advisors now owns 575 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $591,000 after purchasing an additional 12 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Traveka Wealth LLC boosted its stake in ServiceNow by 3.8% during the 3rd quarter. Traveka Wealth LLC now owns 330 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $304,000 after purchasing an additional 12 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.18% of the company’s stock.

Key Stories Impacting ServiceNow

Here are the key news stories impacting ServiceNow this week:

• Positive Sentiment: CEO Bill McDermott bought roughly $3 million of NOW shares on the open market — a high‑visibility insider purchase that signals management confidence and likely helped limit the sell‑off. ServiceNow (NOW) CEO McDermott Bought $3 Million Worth Company Shares
• Positive Sentiment: BNP Paribas analysis flags valuation upside in select SaaS names (including ServiceNow) when adjusting for stock‑based compensation — a positive analyst/data point for medium‑term buyers. BNP Paribas analyzes SaaS valuations … sees upside in ServiceNow
• Positive Sentiment: ServiceNow management (President & COO Amit Zavery) reiterated that AI adoption is driving enterprise demand for the Now Platform — supportive messaging for revenue/booking momentum expectations. ServiceNow Sees AI Adoption Driving Enterprise Growth
• Neutral Sentiment: Tequity Advisors named a ServiceNow leader/M&A advisor — a sector hire that is unlikely to move the stock materially but indicates continued deal‑market interest. Tequity Advisors Welcomes Thomas Moewe as ServiceNow Leader, M&A Advisor
• Negative Sentiment: Director/insider Paul Fipps sold 9,641 shares (~$1.02M) on Feb. 18 — insider selling can be viewed negatively by traders even when not uncommon for tax/liquidity reasons. Paul Fipps Sells 9,641 Shares of ServiceNow Stock
• Negative Sentiment: Options flow shows a large, unusual buyer interest in puts (over 100k contracts recently) — elevated put volume signals hedging or directional bearish bets that can pressure near‑term sentiment.
• Negative Sentiment: Broader “SaaSpocalypse” / software‑stock rotation persists — high‑profile managers exiting software and media coverage of the sector slump are keeping downward pressure on NOW despite company‑specific positives. Why one of tech’s top fund managers just abandoned software stocks

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.