Sowell Financial Services LLC Takes Position in Gartner, Inc. (NYSE:IT)

Sowell Financial Services LLC purchased a new position in Gartner, Inc. (NYSE:IT - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 1,843 shares of the information technology services provider's stock, valued at approximately $774,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Cary Street Partners Financial LLC purchased a new stake in Gartner in the 4th quarter worth $27,000. Kestra Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Gartner in the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. grew 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 purchasing an additional 68 shares in the last quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in Gartner during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $49,000. Finally, Promus Capital LLC purchased a new position in Gartner in the 4th quarter worth approximately $57,000. 91.51% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other Gartner news, SVP John J. Rinello sold 109 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $436.35, for a total transaction of $47,562.15. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 3,280 shares in the company, valued at $1,431,228. This trade represents a 3.22% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP William James Wartinbee III sold 538 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $449.09, for a total value of $241,610.42. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 7,965 shares in the company, valued at $3,577,001.85. The trade was a 6.33% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 5,426 shares of company stock valued at $2,430,327. 2.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have issued reports on IT shares. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price target on shares of Gartner from $622.00 to $535.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Gartner from $401.00 to $400.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Robert W. Baird reduced their price objective on Gartner from $605.00 to $557.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, March 21st. Barclays lowered their target price on Gartner from $510.00 to $475.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 21st. Finally, UBS Group cut their target price on shares of Gartner from $525.00 to $500.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $515.89.

Gartner Trading Down 1.4%

NYSE IT traded down $5.78 during trading on Thursday, hitting $398.91. The stock had a trading volume of 712,089 shares, compared to its average volume of 477,808. Gartner, Inc. has a one year low of $366.05 and a one year high of $584.01. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $423.78 and a 200 day simple moving average of $464.54. The stock has a market capitalization of $30.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.82, a P/E/G ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 1.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a current ratio of 1.09.

Gartner (NYSE:IT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The information technology services provider reported $2.98 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.72 by $0.26. The firm had revenue of $1.54 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.53 billion. Gartner had a return on equity of 96.70% and a net margin of 19.82%. Gartner's quarterly revenue was up 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.93 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Gartner, Inc. will post 12.5 earnings per share for the current year.

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.