Analyzing Veritec (OTCMKTS:VRTC) and Gartner (NYSE:IT)

Veritec (OTCMKTS:VRTC – Get Rating) and Gartner (NYSE:IT – Get Rating) are both computer and technology companies, but which is the better business? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, earnings, risk, valuation, profitability, institutional ownership and dividends.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent recommendations and price targets for Veritec and Gartner, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Veritec	0	0	0	0	N/A
Gartner	0	4	3	0	2.43

Gartner has a consensus price target of $359.00, indicating a potential upside of 7.55%. Given Gartner’s higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Gartner is more favorable than Veritec.

Profitability

This table compares Veritec and Gartner’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Veritec	-201.65%	N/A	-460.19%
Gartner	14.75%	2,645.96%	13.34%

Volatility and Risk

Veritec has a beta of -21.4, suggesting that its stock price is 2,240% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Gartner has a beta of 1.28, suggesting that its stock price is 28% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Veritec and Gartner’s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Veritec	$350,000.00	2.29	-$510,000.00	($0.03)	-0.67
Gartner	$5.48 billion	4.82	$807.80 million	$9.99	33.41

Gartner has higher revenue and earnings than Veritec. Veritec is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Gartner, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

91.9% of Gartner shares are held by institutional investors. 51.8% of Veritec shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 3.7% of Gartner shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Summary

Gartner beats Veritec on 12 of the 13 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Veritec

(Get Rating)

Veritec, Inc. engages in the development, sales, and licensing of products. It also provides services related to mobile banking solutions. The firm also operates in back-end cardholder transaction processing services for visa-branded card programs on behalf of its sponsoring bank. The company was founded on September 8, 1982 and is headquartered in Golden Valley, MN.

About Gartner

(Get Rating)

Gartner, Inc. is a research and advisory company, which equips business leaders with insights, advice, and tools that help build organizations. It operates through the following segments: Research, Consulting, and Conferences. The Research segment provides executives with objective insights and advice through reports, briefings, proprietary tools, access to the firm’s research experts, peer networking services, and membership programs. The Consulting segment offers customized solutions to unique client needs through on-site, day-to-day support, and proprietary tools for measuring and improving IT performance. The Conferences segment offers business professionals the opportunity to learn, share, and network through conferences and peer-driven sessions. The company was founded by Gideon I. Gartner and Dave L. R. Stein in 1979 and is headquartered in Stamford, CT.