Morgan Stanley Lowers Gartner (NYSE:IT) Price Target to $322.00

Key Points

• Morgan Stanley has reduced its price target for Gartner from $455.00 to $322.00, maintaining an "equal weight" rating, which implies a potential upside of 29.87% from the company's current stock price.
• Other brokerages have also adjusted their targets for Gartner, with Goldman Sachs lowering theirs to $457.00 and Barclays to $320.00.
• Currently, Gartner has a consensus rating of "Hold" with an average price target of $369.25, reflecting general caution among analysts following recent target adjustments.

Gartner (NYSE:IT - Get Free Report) had its price objective dropped by Morgan Stanley from $455.00 to $322.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an "equal weight" rating on the information technology services provider's stock. Morgan Stanley's price objective suggests a potential upside of 29.87% from the company's current price.

A number of other brokerages have also recently commented on IT. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their target price on shares of Gartner from $535.00 to $457.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. Barclays reduced their target price on shares of Gartner from $475.00 to $320.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. BMO Capital Markets cut their target price on shares of Gartner from $409.00 to $272.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of Gartner from $400.00 to $345.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 18th. Finally, UBS Group reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $270.00 price objective (down previously from $480.00) on shares of Gartner in a research note on Wednesday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Gartner presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $369.25.

Gartner Trading Up 1.6%

Shares of IT stock traded up $4.02 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $247.95. 1,423,120 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 736,318. The firm has a market capitalization of $19.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.43 and a beta of 1.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a current ratio of 1.09 and a quick ratio of 1.09. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $387.48 and its 200-day moving average price is $434.27. Gartner has a 52-week low of $231.00 and a 52-week high of $584.01.

Gartner (NYSE:IT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The information technology services provider reported $3.53 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.38 by $0.15. Gartner had a net margin of 19.82% and a return on equity of 96.70%. The firm had revenue of $1.66 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.68 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $3.22 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts forecast that Gartner will post 12.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, 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 sale, the executive vice president directly owned 7,965 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,577,001.85. This trade represents a 6.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Craig Safian sold 3,415 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $450.17, for a total value of $1,537,330.55. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 77,890 shares in the company, valued at approximately $35,063,741.30. The trade was a 4.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 4,578 shares of company stock worth $2,060,191 in the last ninety days. 3.60% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Gartner

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in IT. Sompo Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its position in Gartner by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. Sompo Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 1,210 shares of the information technology services provider's stock valued at $586,000 after buying an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Cornerstone Advisory LLC increased its stake in shares of Gartner by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Cornerstone Advisory LLC now owns 2,803 shares of the information technology services provider's stock valued at $1,443,000 after purchasing an additional 21 shares during the period. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. increased its stake in shares of Gartner by 3.1% in the fourth quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. now owns 758 shares of the information technology services provider's stock valued at $367,000 after purchasing an additional 23 shares during the period. Connecticut Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Gartner by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Connecticut Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,604 shares of the information technology services provider's stock valued at $2,230,000 after purchasing an additional 26 shares during the period. Finally, Keel Point LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Gartner by 5.5% in the fourth quarter. Keel Point LLC now owns 514 shares of the information technology services provider's stock valued at $249,000 after acquiring an additional 27 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.51% of the company's stock.

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.

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