Gartner (NYSE:IT – Get Free Report) and Charles River Associates (NASDAQ:CRAI – Get Free Report) are both business services companies, but which is the better business? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, dividends, profitability, risk, earnings, valuation and institutional ownership.
Volatility and Risk
Gartner has a beta of 1.19, meaning that its stock price is 19% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Charles River Associates has a beta of 0.91, meaning that its stock price is 9% less volatile than the S&P 500.
Analyst Ratings
This is a summary of recent ratings for Gartner and Charles River Associates, as reported by MarketBeat.
| Sell Ratings | Hold Ratings | Buy Ratings | Strong Buy Ratings | Rating Score | |
| Gartner | 1 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 2.44 |
| Charles River Associates | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3.00 |
Insider and Institutional Ownership
91.5% of Gartner shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 84.1% of Charles River Associates shares are owned by institutional investors. 3.6% of Gartner shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 5.2% of Charles River Associates shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a company is poised for long-term growth.
Profitability
This table compares Gartner and Charles River Associates’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.
| Net Margins | Return on Equity | Return on Assets | |
| Gartner | 19.82% | 96.70% | 13.68% |
| Charles River Associates | 7.31% | 25.88% | 9.44% |
Earnings and Valuation
This table compares Gartner and Charles River Associates”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.
| Gross Revenue | Price/Sales Ratio | Net Income | Earnings Per Share | Price/Earnings Ratio | |
| Gartner | $6.30 billion | 4.34 | $1.25 billion | $16.07 | 22.10 |
| Charles River Associates | $687.41 million | 1.76 | $46.65 million | $7.41 | 23.92 |
Gartner has higher revenue and earnings than Charles River Associates. Gartner is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Charles River Associates, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.
Summary
Gartner beats Charles River Associates on 11 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.
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. The Conferences segment offers executives and teams in an organization the opportunity to learn, share, and network. The Consulting segment offers market-leading research, custom analysis, and on-the-ground support services. This segment also offers actionable solutions for IT-related priorities, including IT cost optimization, digital transformation, and IT sourcing optimization. Gartner, Inc. was founded in 1979 and is headquartered in Stamford, Connecticut.
About Charles River Associates
CRA International, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, provides economic, financial, and management consulting services worldwide. It advises clients on economic and financial matters pertaining to litigation and regulatory proceedings; and guides corporations through business strategy and performance-related issues. The company also offers consulting services, including research and analysis, expert testimony, and support in litigation and regulatory proceedings in the areas of finance, accounting, economics, insurance, and forensic accounting and investigations to corporate clients and attorneys. In addition, it offers management consulting services comprising strategy development, performance improvement, corporate strategy and portfolio analysis, estimation of market demand, environmental, social and corporate governance and sustainability strategy and analysis, design and implementation of auction and bidding, new product pricing strategies, survey and market research, valuation of intellectual property and other assets, assessment of competitors’ actions, and analysis of new sources of supply. The company serves various industries, including communications and media; consumer, health, and wellness products; energy; entertainment and leisure; financial services; healthcare; life sciences; manufacturing and industries; natural resources; retail and distribution; technology; and transportation. CRA International, Inc. was incorporated in 1965 and is headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts.
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