Empowered Funds LLC Invests $903,000 in ePlus inc. $PLUS

Empowered Funds LLC bought a new stake in shares of ePlus inc. (NASDAQ:PLUS) in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm bought 10,845 shares of the software maker’s stock, valued at approximately $903,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in shares of ePlus in the second quarter worth $337,929,000. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in ePlus by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,453,215 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $215,147,000 after purchasing an additional 8,146 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in ePlus by 3.8% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,310,378 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $98,604,000 after buying an additional 48,158 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its position in ePlus by 0.9% during the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,019,061 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $73,474,000 after buying an additional 8,956 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP lifted its position in shares of ePlus by 118.2% in 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 last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.80% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on PLUS shares. Zacks Research raised shares of ePlus from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of ePlus in a research note on Friday, July 10th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold”.

Insider Activity

In other ePlus news, Director John E. Callies sold 500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.09, for a total value of $44,045.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 20,648 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $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 the SEC website. Also, CFO Elaine D. Marion sold 5,514 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $96.41, for a total value of $531,604.74. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 84,259 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,123,410.19. This represents a 6.14% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 13,700 shares of company stock valued at $1,301,128. Company insiders own 2.20% of the company’s stock.

ePlus Price Performance

Shares of ePlus stock opened at $92.10 on Friday. ePlus inc. has a 52-week low of $69.25 and a 52-week high of $98.14. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.40 billion, a PE ratio of 20.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.17 and a beta of 0.97. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $88.04 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $83.67.

ePlus (NASDAQ:PLUS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The software maker reported $1.28 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.19 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $649.11 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $639.95 million. ePlus had a return on equity of 11.51% and a net margin of 4.91%. Analysts predict that ePlus inc. will post 4.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

ePlus Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 16th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 25th will be given a $0.27 dividend. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, August 25th. ePlus’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 23.63%.

ePlus Profile

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.