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ServiceNow (NOW) Shows a Renewal of Upward Momentum After Breaking to an All-Time High

This week we are looking at another of the Investor’s Business Daily (IBD) Top 50 List companies.  We use this list in one of our options portfolios to spot outperforming stocks and place option spreads that take advantage of the momentum.

ServiceNow pushed upward to a fresh all-time high in the past week. The following two articles outline some of the reasons that are driving the growth – ServiceNow: The Workflow Revolution Is Happening and ServiceNow delivers strong Q4 as it expands wallet share.

Technicals

The monthly candle for NOW in January hinted of a potential pullback but the recent surge to new highs indicates otherwise. The upward trend remains intact for this stock and the expectation is that dips will be bought over the near-term. A rising trendline that dates to May last year held the decline last month where a small consolidation took place showing that buyers are ready to step in on dips. Near-term support is seen at the December high of $566.75.  There is momentum behind the move in the past week which suggest the rally will continue although it would not be surprising to see brief period of sideways trading to work off overbought conditions on the smaller time frames.

NOW Chart February 2021

NOW Chart February 2021

If you agree there’s further upside ahead for NOW, consider this trade which relies on the stock remaining above $590 through the expiration in five weeks.

Buy To Open NOW 12MAR21 587.5 Puts (NOW210312P587.5)
Sell To Open NOW 12MAR21 590 Puts (NOW210312P590) for a credit of $1.38 (selling a vertical)

This credit is $0.02 less than the mid-point of the option spread when NOW was trading near $590.  Unless the stock rallies quickly from here, you should be able to get close to this amount.

Your commission on this trade will be only $1.30 per spread.  Each spread would then yield $136.70. This reduces your buying power by $250 and makes your investment $113.30 ($250 – $136.70).  If NOW closes at any price above $590 on March 12, both options will expire worthless, and your return on the spread would be 121% ($136.70 / $113.30), or 1380% annualized.

Changes to Investor’s Business Daily (IBD) Top 50 This Week:

IBD Underlying Updates February 6, 2021

IBD Underlying Updates February 6, 2021

We have found that the Investor’s Business Daily Top 50 List has been a reliable source of stocks that are likely to move higher in the short run.  Recent additions to the list might be particularly good choices for this strategy, and deletions might be good indicators for exiting a position that you might already have on that stock.

As with all investments, you should only make option trades with money that you can truly afford to lose.

Happy trading,

Terry

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I have been trading the equity markets with many different strategies for over 40 years. Terry Allen's strategies have been the most consistent money makers for me. I used them during the 2008 melt-down, to earn over 50% annualized return, while all my neighbors were crying about their losses.

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