ePlus (NASDAQ:PLUS) Sets New 12-Month High – Here’s What Happened

ePlus inc. (NASDAQ:PLUS)’s share price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $93.99 and last traded at $93.1090, with a volume of 34348 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $92.60.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently commented on PLUS shares. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of ePlus in a research note on Friday, July 10th. Zacks Research cut shares of ePlus from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 17th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, ePlus presently has an average rating of “Reduce”.

ePlus Trading Up 1.1%

The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $84.43 and a 200 day simple moving average of $83.08. The stock has a market cap of $2.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 1.02.

ePlus (NASDAQ:PLUS) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 company had revenue of $581.63 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $569.25 million. ePlus had a return on equity of 11.36% and a net margin of 5.24%. As a group, equities analysts expect that ePlus inc. will post 4.66 earnings per share for the current year.

ePlus Increases Dividend

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

Insider Transactions at ePlus

In other ePlus news, COO Darren S. Raiguel sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $89.95, for a total transaction of $89,950.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 55,748 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,014,532.60. This trade represents a 1.76% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In the last three months, insiders have sold 1,289 shares of company stock worth $115,757. 1.93% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On ePlus

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of PLUS. Osaic Holdings Inc. raised 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 buying an additional 351 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in ePlus by 30.8% during the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 904 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $79,000 after acquiring an additional 213 shares during the last quarter. Kestra Advisory Services LLC bought a new stake in ePlus during the fourth quarter valued at $108,000. US Bancorp DE grew its holdings in ePlus by 856.4% during the 3rd quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 1,731 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $123,000 after acquiring an additional 1,550 shares during the period. Finally, Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund acquired a new stake in ePlus during the 4th quarter worth about $138,000. 93.80% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.