ServiceNow's unexpected expense surge makes its rich valuation more vulnerable in a struggling software sector. Revenue rose 21%, but spending drove an EPS miss and one quarter of guided cRPO deceleration; wider market conditions could hurt near term. The 20% selloff looks excessive, and few software companies should benefit as much from AI. Management could deliver over 3-5 years, though the stock is only close to a buy again now; below $100 looks good for the long term. x.com  x.com  x.com  x.com 

ServiceNow's AI contract growth and improving free cash flow margin make the 18% selloff excessive and its shares a massive discount among leading enterprise AI companies. AI net-new ACV rose 65%; its 2026 AI ACV target rose to $1.7B, up 70% from the start of the year. Adjusted operating margin slipped to 32.5% from 33.5%, but free cash flow margin rose to 20% from 17.5%. Acquisition costs, stock compensation and severance largely drove the GAAP decline. x.com  x.com  x.com 

ServiceNow's seat business is being cannibalized faster than AI deals can replace it. Next-quarter cRPO growth is guided to 18.5%, down from 20.5%, while subscription growth was 24.5% two quarters ago; agentic usage on its platform is up 13x. Management points to AI deal value heading to $1.7bn, against a roughly $16bn subscription business. The slowdown leaves more pain ahead. Underweight, $90 target. x.com  x.com 

ServiceNow's CEO is unlikely to stake his credibility on a confident message he can't deliver. Bill McDermott is everywhere with a clear, consistent message on AI and growth, and a miss or guide-down afterward would cost him credibility instantly. In a clip @MarceloLima shares, he cites 20%-plus subscription growth, expanding margins and flat headcount at a 'rule of 56' he wants to take into the 60s. Nvidia's Jensen Huang has also named ServiceNow within the AI ecosystem. x.com 

ServiceNow's AI business undercuts fears that AI will put it out of business. Its AI revenues are expected to surpass $1.5 billion by the end of 2026 and reach $9.6 billion in 2030. The stock rose 9% back to $137 a share. x.com  x.com 

ServiceNow's slowing contracted-revenue growth suggests agentic AI and growing open-source alternatives may be reducing the need for its products. Q3 operating margin fell to 9.4% from 16.8% a year earlier, net income dropped, and cRPO growth slowed from 25% to 20.5%; Q4 guidance implies 18.5%. x.com 

ServiceNow has put in a very clear bottom and is still cheap at 25x forward earnings. Its monthly RSI hit oversold and volume surged, always a strong confirmation of tops and bottoms. The stock will most likely triple over the next 18 months if it applies AI well to its business model, as Jensen Huang seems to expect. x.com 

ServiceNow is priced as if AI agents will replace it, yet its numbers show AI becoming its biggest growth driver. Q2 revenue grew 24% to $3.9B, faster than last quarter, earnings beat by almost 5% and full-year guidance rose for the second time. Its AI products crossed $1B in annual contract value, renewals were 98%, and $1M+ deals rose 40% to 123. AI infrastructure costs have squeezed margins slightly, and AI shrinking software budgets over 5-10 years is a fair bear risk. x.com 

ServiceNow's gross profit and expense trends show its underlying business deteriorating despite the AI revenue pitch. Quarterly gross profit grew just over 10% year over year, possibly its slowest pace ever, while expenses rose across the board and profit weakened materially. Relabeling revenue as AI has not changed the trend in total sales. x.com 

ServiceNow is building autonomous enterprise AI agents with Nvidia, which makes the selling in the stock look misguided. Nvidia says the two are collaborating on agents with governance, auditability and secure execution, and ServiceNow introduced Project Arc, a long-running desktop agent built on open models and Nvidia OpenShell. x.com