Stock Traders Purchase High Volume of Call Options on ServiceNow (NYSE:NOW)

ServiceNow, Inc. (NYSE:NOW) saw some unusual options trading activity on Wednesday. Stock investors acquired 52,628 call options on the company. This is an increase of 31% compared to the typical volume of 40,100 call options.

Key ServiceNow News

Here are the key news stories impacting ServiceNow this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Quarterly beat, strong subscription growth, raised guidance and a $5B buyback authorization — ServiceNow reported Q4 EPS of $0.92 (vs. $0.87 est.), revenue of $3.57B, subscription revenue up ~21% YoY, and management issued above‑consensus 2026 subscription revenue expectations; the board also approved an additional $5B for repurchases. ServiceNow Reports Fourth Quarter and Full-Year 2025 Financial Results
• Positive Sentiment: Ongoing AI monetization push and customer wins — ServiceNow announced an Anthropic partnership (adding to its recent OpenAI tie-up) and expanded deals with Fiserv and Panasonic Avionics, highlighting increasing enterprise adoption of Now Assist and AI-powered CRM. ServiceNow and Anthropic partner to help customers build AI-powered applications ServiceNow inks another AI partnership
• Positive Sentiment: Insider confidence — CEO Bill McDermott bought stock and publicly committed to staying through 2030, signaling management conviction in the AI transition. ServiceNow CEO buys his own stock
• Positive Sentiment: Unusual call buying — unusually high call option volume was reported, which can indicate bullish speculative interest or hedging around the earnings/guidance release.
• Neutral Sentiment: Full disclosures available — the company posted its press release, slide deck and conference call materials for investors to review guidance and modeling details. ServiceNow earnings materials
• Negative Sentiment: Market skepticism on AI payoff and sector weakness — commentators note that despite beats and partnerships, software stocks remain under pressure and investors question whether legacy software names will capture near‑term AI value; ServiceNow has traded well below its 50/200‑day averages recently. ServiceNow says AI is ‘really kicking in’ — but it’s not enough to help the stock
• Negative Sentiment: Mixed public commentary from influencers — some high‑profile hosts and analysts express uncertainty about the company’s near-term growth trajectory, which can amplify selling even after positive results. “I Don’t Know What to do With ServiceNow (NOW),” Says Jim Cramer

ServiceNow Stock Down 1.6%

Shares of ServiceNow stock opened at $129.68 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $134.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 78.41, a P/E/G ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a current ratio of 1.06 and a quick ratio of 1.06. ServiceNow has a 52-week low of $123.78 and a 52-week high of $234.08. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $151.58 and a 200-day simple moving average of $171.79.

ServiceNow (NYSE:NOW) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 28th. The information technology services provider reported $0.92 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.89 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $3.57 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.53 billion. ServiceNow had a return on equity of 18.74% and a net margin of 13.66%.The firm’s revenue was up 20.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.73 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that ServiceNow will post 8.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at ServiceNow

In other news, Director Paul Edward Chamberlain sold 1,500 shares of ServiceNow stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $161.60, for a total value of $242,400.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 47,930 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,745,488. The trade was a 3.03% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Vice Chairman Nicholas Tzitzon sold 2,610 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $165.42, for a total transaction of $431,735.76. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 15,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,481,240. This represents a 14.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 15,310 shares of company stock worth $2,533,585. Company insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On ServiceNow

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Kilter Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of ServiceNow in the second quarter valued at about $25,000. IAG Wealth Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of ServiceNow by 200.0% in the 3rd quarter. IAG Wealth Partners LLC now owns 27 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 18 shares during the period. Noble Wealth Management PBC grew its holdings in shares of ServiceNow by 400.0% during the 4th quarter. Noble Wealth Management PBC now owns 160 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 128 shares in the last quarter. Lodestone Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of ServiceNow during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Finally, Albion Financial Group UT increased its position in shares of ServiceNow by 400.0% during the fourth quarter. Albion Financial Group UT now owns 170 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 136 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.18% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have weighed in on NOW shares. Oppenheimer reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $175.00 price objective (down from $200.00) on shares of ServiceNow in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Citigroup decreased their target price on ServiceNow from $250.60 to $235.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. DZ Bank raised ServiceNow to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 18th. Arete Research set a $200.00 price objective on ServiceNow in a research report on Tuesday, January 6th. Finally, DA Davidson set a $220.00 target price on ServiceNow and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 16th. Two equities research 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 issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $204.24.

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.