Handelsbanken Fonder AB Increases Stock Position in ServiceNow, Inc. (NYSE:NOW)

Handelsbanken Fonder AB boosted its position in ServiceNow, Inc. (NYSE:NOW) by 41.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 186,086 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 54,142 shares during the period. ServiceNow comprises 0.8% of Handelsbanken Fonder AB’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 19th biggest position. Handelsbanken Fonder AB owned approximately 0.09% of ServiceNow worth $197,273,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. World Investment Advisors LLC grew its position in ServiceNow by 499,668.1% during the third quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC now owns 4,772,785 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $4,268,731,000 after buying an additional 4,771,830 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in ServiceNow by 89,137.0% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,185,067 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $1,059,912,000 after acquiring an additional 1,183,739 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can grew its position in shares of ServiceNow by 216.6% during the 3rd quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 1,367,875 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $1,206,178,000 after acquiring an additional 935,848 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its holdings in shares of ServiceNow by 24.1% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 3,169,531 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $2,834,797,000 after purchasing an additional 615,797 shares during the period. Finally, FMR LLC lifted its stake in ServiceNow by 9.9% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 5,606,394 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $5,014,302,000 after purchasing an additional 502,845 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.18% of the company’s stock.

ServiceNow Price Performance

NOW opened at $986.61 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 1.10, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15. The stock has a market capitalization of $203.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 144.45, a PEG ratio of 4.59 and a beta of 0.99. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $1,061.97 and a 200-day moving average price of $976.06. ServiceNow, Inc. has a 12-month low of $637.99 and a 12-month high of $1,198.09.

ServiceNow (NYSE:NOW) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The information technology services provider reported $3.67 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%. Equities analysts predict that ServiceNow, Inc. will post 8.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

ServiceNow declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, January 29th that permits the company to buyback $3.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the information technology services provider to purchase up to 1.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are usually an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have issued reports on NOW. Cantor Fitzgerald started coverage on ServiceNow in a research note on Friday, January 17th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $1,332.00 target price on the stock. JMP Securities reaffirmed a “market outperform” rating and set a $1,300.00 price objective on shares of ServiceNow in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Needham & Company LLC lifted their target price on shares of ServiceNow from $1,150.00 to $1,200.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Truist Financial raised their price objective on shares of ServiceNow from $900.00 to $1,100.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Robert W. Baird lowered their target price on shares of ServiceNow from $1,250.00 to $1,200.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 30th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, twenty-five have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $1,129.72.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Anita M. Sands sold 2,229 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,064.60, for a total value of $2,372,993.40. Following the transaction, the director now owns 11,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,710,600. This trade represents a 16.85 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Paul John Smith sold 2,404 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $980.05, for a total transaction of $2,356,040.20. Following the sale, the insider now owns 6,244 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,119,432.20. This represents a 27.80 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 15,806 shares of company stock worth $16,065,122 in the last 90 days. 0.25% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About ServiceNow

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.