Gartner (NYSE: IT) raises its full-year outlook but GAAP revenue slips 1.3%

What happened

Gartner, Inc. (NYSE: IT) reported FX-neutral contract value of $5.3 billion for the third quarter, up 2.5% year over year, and raised guidance.

Chairman and CEO Gene Hall said contract value growth accelerated again. He said revenues, adjusted EBITDA excluding the divested operation, adjusted EPS and free cash flow beat expectations. Gartner raised its full-year 2026 guidance for all four measures in the Nov. 3 release.

The question for holders is how much of the profit gain is real operating improvement and how much comes from comparing against an impairment quarter.

Key numbers

Metric	Latest	Change	Source
Contract Value, FX neutral	$5.3 billion	+2.5%	Gartner Q3 2026 earnings release (SEC 8-K, Exhibit 99.1)
GAAP net income	$214 million	from $35 million, +506.4%	Gartner Q3 2026 earnings release (SEC 8-K, Exhibit 99.1)
Adjusted EBITDA excluding divested operation	$364 million	from $339 million, +7.5%	Gartner Q3 2026 earnings release (SEC 8-K, Exhibit 99.1)
GAAP revenues	$1.5 billion	from $1.52 billion, -1.3%	Gartner Q3 2026 earnings release (SEC 8-K, Exhibit 99.1)
Adjusted EPS	$3.59	from $2.76, +30.1%	Gartner Q3 2026 earnings release (SEC 8-K, Exhibit 99.1)

Read more: Gartner (IT) company research

Profit gains against an impairment quarter

GAAP net income was $214 million, up 506.4% from $35 million a year earlier. Diluted EPS was $3.35 against $0.47, and operating income was $281 million. The year-earlier quarter included a $150 million goodwill impairment related to Digital Markets, which lowered that base.

Adjusted EBITDA excluding the divested operation removes that impairment and the Digital Markets business. It reached $364 million, up 7.5% as reported and 7.4% FX neutral from $339 million.

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Revenue and contract value grow only modestly

GAAP revenues were $1.5 billion, down 1.3% as reported and 1.1% FX neutral. The year-earlier quarter included $55 million of revenue from the divested Digital Markets operation. Adjusted revenues, which exclude that operation, rose 2.4% as reported and 2.6% FX neutral.

Insights revenue grew 1.7% to $1.29 billion with a 77.6% contribution margin. Conferences revenue rose 15.4% to $86 million and Consulting revenue rose 2.3% to $126 million.

Contract value rose 1.1% from the prior quarter. Global Technology Sales was $4.0 billion, up 0.8% sequentially and 2.1% year over year. Global Business Sales was $1.3 billion, up 1.8% and 3.7%, so the smaller unit is growing faster on both measures.

Buybacks widen the per-share gain

Gartner repurchased 0.9 million common shares for $138 million in the quarter and $1.7 billion of stock over the last four quarters. Hall called capital allocation a source of value for shareholders. Diluted weighted average shares were 63.9 million against 75.0 million a year earlier, a 14.8% drop by OptimistFi's calculation.

Adjusted net income rose 11.1% to $230 million from $207 million. Adjusted EPS rose 30.1% to $3.59 from $2.76. The smaller share count explains the gap between those growth rates.

Cash generation was mixed. Operating cash flow was $294 million, down 1.4%. Free cash flow was $275 million, up 2.2%.

Why it matters

OptimistFi has argued that Gartner works only if its research stays indispensable in an AI-heavy information market and management turns steady demand into operating leverage. Adjusted EBITDA growing faster than adjusted revenue supports the leverage half of that view. Low single-digit contract value growth leaves the indispensability half unproven, so OptimistFi reads the quarter as mixed.

The caveats are in the numbers. GAAP revenue and operating cash flow both fell, and much of the per-share growth comes from fewer shares. The release's risk language lists customer renewals, new contract value amid competitive pressures and keeping pace with AI developments as factors that could change results.

What's next

Gartner scheduled a webcast at 8 a.m. Eastern on Nov. 3 to discuss the results. Its earnings supplement on the investor relations website carries the updated 2026 outlook.

The next quarterly report is the test. Holders will look for contract value growth that keeps accelerating and adjusted EBITDA that keeps growing faster than adjusted revenue. A slowdown in contract value or a squeeze on adjusted EBITDA would weaken the case.

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