ServiceNow (NYSE:NOW) Trading Down 17.7% on Analyst Downgrade

23 Apr 2026, 16:52 by Amy Steele · The Cerbat Gem

ServiceNow, Inc. (NYSE:NOW – Get Free Report) shares traded down 17.7% during trading on Thursday after Citizens Jmp lowered their price target on the stock from $260.00 to $157.00. Citizens Jmp currently has a market outperform rating on the stock. ServiceNow traded as low as $83.58 and last traded at $84.8490. 83,418,989 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 299% from the average session volume of 20,900,893 shares. The stock had previously closed at $103.07.

Other research analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. Weiss Ratings downgraded ServiceNow from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Arete Research set a $200.00 price target on ServiceNow in a research note on Tuesday, January 6th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on ServiceNow from $185.00 to $160.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday. Wall Street Zen downgraded ServiceNow from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 28th. Finally, Benchmark initiated coverage on ServiceNow in a research note on Wednesday, April 1st. They issued a “buy” rating and a $125.00 price target on the stock. Three investment 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 assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $149.53.

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Insiders Place Their Bets

In other ServiceNow news, Director Paul Edward Chamberlain sold 1,500 shares of ServiceNow stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $101.17, for a total transaction of $151,755.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 46,430 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,697,323.10. The trade was a 3.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Kevin Thomas Mcbride sold 1,400 shares of ServiceNow stock in a transaction dated 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 in the company, valued at $2,781,652.94. This represents a 5.05% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 16,237 shares of company stock worth $1,697,162. Corporate insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Key Stories Impacting ServiceNow

Here are the key news stories impacting ServiceNow this week:

Positive Sentiment: Q1 revenue and outlook: ServiceNow beat revenue expectations and raised its annual subscription‑revenue outlook, citing strong demand for AI‑powered workflows — a clear fundamental positive for long‑term growth. ServiceNow boosts annual subscription revenue outlook (Reuters)
Positive Sentiment: AI partnerships & customer wins: ServiceNow highlighted product momentum (new Google Cloud AI agent integrations and customer case studies like TridentCare), underscoring its positioning in enterprise AI workflows. ServiceNow and Google Cloud unite AI (Yahoo/BusinessWire)
Positive Sentiment: Some bulls remain: Several firms reiterated buy/overweight ratings (and at least one raised its target), signaling that many analysts view recent weakness as a valuation reset rather than a structural hit. Bernstein raises price target (MarketScreener)
Neutral Sentiment: Beat but EPS inline: ServiceNow reported $0.97 non‑GAAP EPS (in line) and revenue slightly above views — good execution, but not the clear upside surprise many wanted. Q1 earnings summary (Zacks)
Neutral Sentiment: Corporate events: Management set an Analyst Day for May 4 and signaled buyback activity; these are near‑term catalysts that could provide more clarity on margins and AI monetization. Analyst Day set (Yahoo Finance)
Negative Sentiment: Margin headwinds: Management flagged that the Armis acquisition will pressure margins (~75 bps for the year; ~125 bps in Q2), which directly hurts near‑term profitability expectations. Armis deal will weigh on margins (WSJ)
Negative Sentiment: Geopolitical deal delays: ServiceNow said Middle East deal closures were delayed by the Iran conflict, creating roughly a 75‑bp subscription revenue headwind in Q1 — a key reason investors sold into the print. Iran war delays deals (Yahoo Finance)
Negative Sentiment: Analyst cuts & sentiment shift: Multiple firms cut price targets and several trimmed forecasts after the call — fueling forced selling and adding to the downward momentum. Analyst cuts after Q1 (Benzinga)
Negative Sentiment: Sector spillover & AI fears: The print rekindled broader market worries about AI disruption in software, dragging peers lower and amplifying NOW’s selloff. Software sector selloff (CNBC)

Institutional Trading of ServiceNow

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of NOW. IAG Wealth Partners LLC raised its stake 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 valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 18 shares during the period. Noble Wealth Management PBC raised its stake in shares of 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 period. Millstone Evans Group LLC raised its stake in shares of 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 period. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC raised its stake in shares of 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 period. Finally, Blueline Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of ServiceNow in the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.18% of the company’s stock.

ServiceNow Price Performance

The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $105.55 and a 200-day simple moving average of $138.83. The stock has a market cap of $87.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 50.87, a P/E/G ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a current ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12.

ServiceNow (NYSE:NOW – Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results 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. The firm had revenue of $3.77 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.75 billion. ServiceNow had a return on equity of 18.54% and a net margin of 13.16%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 22.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $4.04 EPS. Research analysts expect that ServiceNow, Inc. will post 2.49 EPS for the current year.

About ServiceNow

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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.