IT$179.59

Assuming Gartner’s profile as an information services and advisory business, growth has slowed materially: revenue rose steadily from FY21 to FY25, but the pace decelerated from mid-teens to low single digits, and TTM is only modestly above FY25. Net income was strong through FY24 but fell sharply in FY25 and TTM, showing weaker earnings momentum than sales. Gross margin has been broadly stable in the high-60s, but operating margin has compressed from about 21% to 16%, indicating expense growth is outpacing revenue. Earnings durability is somewhat clouded by a large FY24 other-income spike and a lower tax rate that year. Overall, this is a profitable business, but recent margin pressure and slower growth temper the quality of the trend.

Gartner’s balance sheet shows adequate near-term liquidity but only a thin cushion. Cash and equivalents were $1.7 billion in FY2025, while total current assets were $4.1 billion against $4.1 billion of current liabilities, leaving working capital essentially flat. Solvency is acceptable but leverage has worsened: total debt rose to $3.3 billion and total liabilities increased to $7.8 billion, exceeding the $8.1 billion asset base by only a small margin of equity. Shareholders’ equity dropped sharply to $320 million in FY2025 and just $63 million TTM, while tangible book value remains deeply negative due to sizable goodwill and intangibles. Overall, the structure is serviceable but increasingly leveraged and asset-light, with limited equity protection.

Gartner’s cash generation is solid, with operating cash flow generally strong at $1.1B–$1.5B over FY2021–FY2025 and TTM CFO of $1.37B slightly above the latest FY2025 level of $1.29B. Free cash flow has also been consistently robust, ranging from $993M to $1.38B, with TTM FCF of $1.26B after about $110M of CapEx, showing disciplined reinvestment. The main weakness is working capital volatility, especially receivables and unearned revenue, which can swing materially year to year. Capital returns are aggressive, with buybacks of $1.99B in FY2025 and $2.36B TTM, partly offset by debt issuance. Overall, cash generation is healthy, though allocation is shareholder-focused and leveraged.

Gartner is a non-financial company. Liquidity has been modest but stable: the current ratio stayed around 0.8-1.1 and the quick ratio around 0.6-0.9, suggesting only limited short-term cushion, though recent readings are not materially worse than history. Leverage is moderate and manageable, with debt-to-EBITDA generally near 2.0-2.8x and net debt-to-EBITDA improving from earlier years before settling around 1.3x recently. Efficiency is solid, as asset turnover has trended up from 0.64 to 0.82, indicating better use of assets. Profitability remains strong overall, with ROA around 10-13% and ROIC/ROCE consistently healthy, though both have eased from prior peaks. ROE is very high but amplified by leverage.

Historical results run from FY2021 through FY2025, while analyst-covered forecast years begin in FY2026. Revenue grew steadily but clearly slowed from mid-teens in 2021-2022 to low-single-digit growth by 2024-2026, with a modest reacceleration in 2027. EPS was more volatile: strong gains in 2021 and 2024 were followed by a sharp drop in 2025, then a recovery in the forward years. Forecast EPS growth outpaces revenue growth, suggesting margin improvement after the 2025 dip. Forward P/E of 12.8x in 2026 and 11.4x in 2027 looks moderate relative to the projected earnings rebound. Analyst sentiment is cautious overall: consensus is Hold, with 15 analysts on targets and 20 on forecasts, while the recommendation mix has shifted slightly toward more Holds and one Sell.