Short Interest in Gartner, Inc. (NYSE:IT) Grows By 9.3%

Gartner, Inc. (NYSE:IT) was the target of a significant growth in short interest in the month of November. As of November 15th, there was short interest totalling 1,170,000 shares, a growth of 9.3% from the October 31st total of 1,070,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 316,200 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.7 days. Currently, 1.6% of the company’s shares are sold short.

Gartner Stock Performance

NYSE:IT traded down $1.44 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $515.56. The stock had a trading volume of 510,017 shares, compared to its average volume of 373,848. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.31, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.02. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $521.12 and a 200 day simple moving average of $485.23. Gartner has a 12-month low of $411.15 and a 12-month high of $559.00. The stock has a market cap of $39.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.23 and a beta of 1.31.

Gartner (NYSE:IT) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, November 5th. The information technology services provider reported $2.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.45 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $1.48 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.48 billion. Gartner had a return on equity of 118.27% and a net margin of 17.33%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.56 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that Gartner will post 11.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have issued reports on the company. Barclays increased their price target on Gartner from $470.00 to $525.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Gartner from $490.00 to $528.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price target on Gartner from $529.00 to $531.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on Gartner from $565.00 to $590.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Gartner from $460.00 to $470.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $539.25.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Gartner news, EVP Akhil Jain sold 500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $492.00, for a total value of $246,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 4,339 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,134,788. This represents a 10.33 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Claire Herkes sold 411 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 owns 1,494 shares in the company, valued at approximately $778,732.56. The trade was a 21.57 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 72,560 shares of company stock valued at $37,909,141 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 3.60% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Gartner

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in IT. Eastern Bank bought a new stake in Gartner during the third quarter valued at $26,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new stake in Gartner during the third quarter valued at $44,000. Crewe Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Gartner by 223.3% during the second quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 97 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $44,000 after buying an additional 67 shares during the period. True Wealth Design LLC boosted its stake in 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 valued at $50,000 after buying an additional 94 shares during the period. Finally, Fortitude Family Office LLC lifted its stake in Gartner by 23.8% during the third quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 104 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $53,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. 91.51% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.