Gartner (NYSE:IT) Sees Large Volume Increase – Here’s Why

Gartner, Inc. (NYSE:IT) shares saw unusually-strong trading volume on Tuesday . Approximately 1,099,820 shares were traded during trading, an increase of 192% from the previous session’s volume of 376,963 shares.The stock last traded at $447.90 and had previously closed at $461.70.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on IT shares. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Gartner in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on shares of Gartner from $579.00 to $605.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Barclays upgraded Gartner from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $525.00 to $600.00 in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on Gartner from $470.00 to $460.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 10th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Gartner from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $552.63.

Gartner Stock Down 7.0 %

The stock has a market cap of $32.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.06, a PEG ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 1.29. The company has a quick ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.81. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $505.08 and a two-hundred day moving average of $508.72.

Gartner (NYSE:IT) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The information technology services provider reported $5.45 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.22 by $2.23. Gartner had a return on equity of 116.56% and a net margin of 20.00%. The firm had revenue of $1.72 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.69 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $3.04 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that Gartner, Inc. will post 12.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Gartner

In related news, Director Eileen Serra sold 1,200 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $489.77, for a total value of $587,724.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 1,627 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $796,855.79. The trade was a 42.45 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, SVP John J. Rinello sold 90 shares of Gartner stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $530.51, for a total value of $47,745.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 3,259 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,728,932.09. The trade was a 2.69 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 3.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Gartner

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Cary Street Partners Financial LLC acquired a new position in Gartner in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Kestra Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Gartner during the fourth quarter worth approximately $29,000. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. boosted its position in shares of Gartner by 453.3% during the fourth quarter. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. now owns 83 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 68 shares during the period. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Gartner during the fourth quarter worth approximately $49,000. Finally, True Wealth Design LLC boosted its position in shares of Gartner by 2,350.0% during the third quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 98 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $50,000 after buying an additional 94 shares during the period. 91.51% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Gartner

Gartner, Inc operates as a research and advisory company in the United States, Canada, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and internationally. It operates through three segments: Research, Conferences, and Consulting. The Research segment delivers its research primarily through a subscription service that include on-demand access to published research content, data and benchmarks, and direct access to a network of research experts.