ServiceNow (NYSE:NOW) Shares Down 3.7% – Here’s What Happened

ServiceNow, Inc. (NYSE:NOW) dropped 3.7% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $809.18 and last traded at $813.08. Approximately 323,511 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 76% from the average daily volume of 1,332,974 shares. The stock had previously closed at $844.12.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

NOW has been the topic of several analyst reports. TD Cowen increased their price objective on ServiceNow from $1,025.00 to $1,300.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Oppenheimer raised their price target on ServiceNow from $1,150.00 to $1,200.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Citigroup cut their price target on ServiceNow from $1,432.00 to $1,426.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. William Blair restated an “outperform” rating on shares of ServiceNow in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on ServiceNow from $1,150.00 to $1,250.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and twenty-seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, ServiceNow presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $1,100.31.

ServiceNow Price Performance

The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $971.31 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $983.30. The company has a market cap of $170.55 billion, a PE ratio of 121.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.51 and a beta of 1.03. The company has a current ratio of 1.10, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15.

ServiceNow (NYSE:NOW) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The information technology services provider reported $3.67 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.67. ServiceNow had a net margin of 12.97% and a return on equity of 17.11%. On average, equities analysts predict that ServiceNow, Inc. will post 8.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

ServiceNow announced that its board has initiated a share buyback plan on Wednesday, January 29th that authorizes the company to buyback $3.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the information technology services provider to repurchase up to 1.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity

In related news, General Counsel Russell S. Elmer sold 2,511 shares of ServiceNow stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,012.09, for a total transaction of $2,541,357.99. Following the completion of the transaction, the general counsel now directly owns 4,332 shares in the company, valued at $4,384,373.88. The trade was a 36.69 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO William R. Mcdermott sold 1,263 shares of ServiceNow stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,019.10, for a total value of $1,287,123.30. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 2,595 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,644,564.50. This represents a 32.74 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 20,351 shares of company stock worth $20,050,076. Company insiders own 0.25% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Polymer Capital Management HK LTD raised its holdings in ServiceNow by 57.0% in the 3rd quarter. Polymer Capital Management HK LTD now owns 2,701 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $2,416,000 after acquiring an additional 981 shares during the last quarter. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA acquired a new position in ServiceNow in the 4th quarter valued at $48,802,000. Dock Street Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in ServiceNow by 3.4% in the 4th quarter. Dock Street Asset Management Inc. now owns 33,154 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $35,147,000 after acquiring an additional 1,105 shares during the last quarter. Cardano Risk Management B.V. acquired a new position in ServiceNow in the 4th quarter valued at $105,090,000. Finally, Rheos Capital Works Inc. acquired a new position in ServiceNow in the 4th quarter valued at $10,071,000. 87.18% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

ServiceNow Company Profile

ServiceNow, Inc provides end to-end intelligent workflow automation platform solutions for digital businesses in the North America, Europe, the Middle East and Africa, Asia Pacific, and internationally. The company operates the Now platform for end-to-end digital transformation, artificial intelligence, machine learning, robotic process automation, process mining, performance analytics, and collaboration and development tools.