John Callies Sells 500 Shares of ePlus (NASDAQ:PLUS) Stock

ePlus inc. (NASDAQ:PLUS) Director John Callies sold 500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $88.09, for a total value of $44,045.00. Following the sale, the director owned 20,648 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,818,882.32. This trade represents a 2.36% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link.

ePlus Price Performance

Shares of PLUS stock opened at $86.14 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $86.46 and its 200 day moving average is $83.45. ePlus inc. has a 1-year low of $69.07 and a 1-year high of $98.14. The company has a market cap of $2.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.85, a PEG ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 1.00.

ePlus (NASDAQ:PLUS) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The software maker reported $1.28 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.19 by $0.09. ePlus had a net margin of 4.91% and a return on equity of 11.51%. The business had revenue of $649.11 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $639.95 million. On average, analysts anticipate that ePlus inc. will post 4.86 EPS for the current year.

ePlus Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 16th. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 25th will be paid a dividend of $0.27 per share. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, August 25th. ePlus’s payout ratio is 23.63%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On ePlus

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in ePlus during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $337,929,000. First Trust Advisors LP lifted its stake in shares of ePlus by 118.2% during the first quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 579,047 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $43,573,000 after buying an additional 313,674 shares during the period. Neumeier Poma Investment Counsel LLC acquired a new stake in shares of ePlus during the fourth quarter worth $24,681,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new stake in shares of ePlus during the second quarter valued at $18,210,000. Finally, Bragg Financial Advisors Inc grew its holdings in shares of ePlus by 787.7% during the fourth quarter. Bragg Financial Advisors Inc now owns 181,922 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $15,955,000 after buying an additional 161,428 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.80% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have issued reports on PLUS. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of ePlus in a report on Friday, July 10th. Zacks Research upgraded ePlus from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, July 31st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold”.

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.