StockNews.com Downgrades Gartner (NYSE:IT) to Hold

Gartner (NYSE:IT) was downgraded by analysts at StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a note issued to investors on Tuesday.

A number of other research firms have also recently issued reports on IT. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price objective on shares of Gartner from $529.00 to $531.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Gartner in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Barclays raised Gartner from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $525.00 to $600.00 in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of Gartner from $564.00 to $555.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of Gartner from $470.00 to $460.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Gartner has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $552.63.

Gartner Trading Up 1.1 %

Shares of Gartner stock traded up $5.45 on Tuesday, hitting $503.01. 548,803 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 487,172. The company has a market capitalization of $38.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 1.34. The company has a fifty day moving average of $509.46 and a two-hundred day moving average of $509.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.81, a current ratio of 1.06 and a quick ratio of 1.06. Gartner has a one year low of $411.15 and a one year high of $584.01.

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

Insider Activity at Gartner

In related news, SVP John J. Rinello sold 90 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $530.51, for a total transaction of $47,745.90. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 3,259 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,728,932.09. This trade represents a 2.69 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Claire Herkes sold 411 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $521.24, for a total value of $214,229.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 1,494 shares in the company, valued at approximately $778,732.56. This represents a 21.57 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 690 shares of company stock valued at $360,925 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 3.60% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Cary Street Partners Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Gartner during the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Kestra Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Gartner during the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. increased its position in Gartner by 453.3% in 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 last quarter. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new stake in shares of Gartner in the third quarter valued at $44,000. Finally, True Wealth Design LLC lifted its position in shares of Gartner by 2,350.0% during the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 98 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $50,000 after buying an additional 94 shares during the last quarter. 91.51% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Gartner Company Profile

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.