ePlus (NASDAQ:PLUS) Stock: Insider Darren Raiguel Sells 1,000 Shares

ePlus inc. (NASDAQ:PLUS) COO Darren Raiguel sold 1,000 shares of ePlus stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $91.46, for a total value of $91,460.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 66,036 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,039,652.56. This trade represents a 1.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

ePlus Stock Up 0.6%

ePlus stock opened at $97.19 on Thursday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $92.44 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $85.94. The stock has a market cap of $2.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.95. ePlus inc. has a 12 month low of $73.08 and a 12 month high of $98.92.

ePlus (NASDAQ:PLUS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 5th. The software maker reported $1.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.47 by $0.35. The business had revenue of $667.92 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $636.10 million. ePlus had a return on equity of 11.93% and a net margin of 5.02%. On average, analysts expect that ePlus inc. will post 4.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

ePlus Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 24th will be paid a dividend of $0.27 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 24th. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.1%. ePlus’s payout ratio is currently 22.45%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on PLUS shares. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of ePlus in a report on Tuesday, October 6th. Zacks Research raised shares of ePlus from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, July 31st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold”.

Institutional Trading of ePlus

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of ePlus during the second quarter worth approximately $337,929,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in shares of ePlus by 3.8% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,310,378 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $98,604,000 after acquiring an additional 48,158 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP raised its stake 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 valued at $43,573,000 after acquiring an additional 313,674 shares during the last quarter. Boston Partners boosted its holdings in shares of ePlus by 29.4% in the 3rd quarter. Boston Partners now owns 319,166 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $28,857,000 after acquiring an additional 72,511 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted its holdings in shares of ePlus by 9.6% in the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 278,636 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $20,968,000 after acquiring an additional 24,348 shares in the last quarter. 93.80% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

ePlus Company Profile

ePlus inc. is a technology solutions provider that helps businesses and public-sector organizations plan, acquire, implement and manage information technology. Its offerings include data center and cloud infrastructure, networking, cybersecurity, collaboration tools, software and related professional and managed services. The company also provides financing solutions for technology purchases, including leasing and other equipment financing arrangements. Founded in 1990, ePlus serves customers across the United States and the United Kingdom.