Darren Raiguel Sells 1,935 Shares of ePlus (NASDAQ:PLUS) Stock

ePlus inc. (NASDAQ:PLUS) COO Darren Raiguel sold 1,935 shares of ePlus stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $94.06, for a total value of $182,006.10. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 69,236 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,512,338.16. This represents a 2.72% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website.

ePlus Trading Up 1.6%

NASDAQ PLUS opened at $92.41 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $84.96 and its 200 day moving average price is $83.24. ePlus inc. has a twelve month low of $62.11 and a twelve month high of $95.64. The company has a market capitalization of $2.41 billion, a PE ratio of 19.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.22 and a beta of 1.02.

ePlus (NASDAQ:PLUS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 28th. The software maker reported $1.00 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.98 by $0.02. The firm 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%. Equities analysts predict that ePlus inc. will post 4.66 EPS for the current year.

ePlus Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, June 17th were issued a dividend of $0.27 per share. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, June 17th. This is an increase from ePlus’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. ePlus’s payout ratio is currently 22.31%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On ePlus

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in PLUS. Osaic Holdings Inc. increased its stake in ePlus by 361.9% during the second quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 448 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 351 shares during the last quarter. Kestra Advisory Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of ePlus in the 4th quarter worth about $108,000. US Bancorp DE lifted its stake in shares of ePlus by 856.4% in the 3rd quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 1,731 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $123,000 after purchasing an additional 1,550 shares in the last quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund acquired a new position in shares of ePlus in the 4th quarter valued at about $138,000. Finally, Focus Partners Wealth purchased a new stake in shares of ePlus during the 3rd quarter worth about $154,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.80% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Zacks Research downgraded shares of 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 investment analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, ePlus presently has an average rating of “Reduce”.

About ePlus

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.