Key Points
- ePlus COO Darren Raiguel sold 1,935 shares at an average price of $94.06, generating approximately $182,006; his remaining stake was valued at about $6.5 million.
- ePlus reported quarterly EPS of $1.00, beating estimates by $0.02, while revenue of $581.63 million also exceeded forecasts. The company raised its quarterly dividend to $0.27 per share, equivalent to a 1.2% yield.
- Analyst sentiment is cautious, with the stock carrying a consensus “Reduce” rating, including one Hold and one Sell rating; institutional investors own 93.8% of shares.
ePlus inc. (NASDAQ:PLUS - Get Free Report) COO Darren Raiguel sold 1,935 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $94.06, for a total transaction of $182,006.10. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 69,236 shares in the company, valued at $6,512,338.16. The trade was a 2.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website.
ePlus Trading Down 2.3%
Shares of ePlus stock opened at $90.99 on Friday. The company has a 50-day moving average of $84.82 and a two-hundred day moving average of $83.17. ePlus inc. has a 12-month low of $62.11 and a 12-month high of $95.64. The stock has a market cap of $2.38 billion, a PE ratio of 18.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.25 and a beta of 1.02.
ePlus (NASDAQ:PLUS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 28th. The software maker reported $1.00 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.98 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $581.63 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $569.25 million. ePlus had a return on equity of 11.36% and a net margin of 5.24%. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that ePlus inc. will post 4.66 EPS for the current fiscal year.
ePlus Increases Dividend
The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Investors of record on Wednesday, June 17th were issued a dividend of $0.27 per share. This is a boost from ePlus's previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, June 17th. ePlus's payout ratio is presently 22.31%.
Institutional Trading of ePlus
Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of PLUS. ProShare Advisors LLC raised its holdings in ePlus by 3.2% in the fourth quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 5,129 shares of the software maker's stock valued at $450,000 after buying an additional 159 shares during the period. Inceptionr LLC grew its stake in ePlus by 5.9% during the first quarter. Inceptionr LLC now owns 3,419 shares of the software maker's stock worth $257,000 after buying an additional 190 shares during the period. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. grew its stake in ePlus by 3.2% during the fourth quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 7,544 shares of the software maker's stock worth $662,000 after buying an additional 233 shares during the period. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al increased its position in shares of ePlus by 6.9% in the fourth quarter. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al now owns 3,859 shares of the software maker's stock worth $338,000 after acquiring an additional 250 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Lazard Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of ePlus by 0.8% in the second quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 31,946 shares of the software maker's stock worth $2,303,000 after acquiring an additional 266 shares in the last quarter. 93.80% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
Wall Street Analyst Weigh In
Several research firms have weighed in on PLUS. Zacks Research lowered ePlus from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 17th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of ePlus in a research note on Friday, July 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Reduce".
Read Our Latest Report on PLUS
ePlus Company Profile
(
Get Free Report)
ePlus Inc (NASDAQ:PLUS) is a technology solutions provider that helps enterprises and public-sector organizations maximize the value of their information technology investments. The company specializes in designing, implementing and managing complex IT infrastructures, with a focus on security, cloud computing, data center modernization and unified communications. By combining consulting services with software license management and hardware procurement, ePlus delivers end-to-end solutions that align with its clients' strategic objectives.
The company's offerings include cybersecurity assessments and managed security services, hybrid and public cloud deployments, network architecture and optimization, and collaboration platforms.
See Also
This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from InsiderTrades.com in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. Please send any questions or comments about this story to [email protected].
