ePlus (NASDAQ:PLUS) Sets New 52-Week High – Time to Buy?

Shares of ePlus inc. (NASDAQ:PLUS) reached a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $95.75 and last traded at $93.66, with a volume of 290877 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $92.41.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on PLUS shares. Weiss Ratings reiterated 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 report on Wednesday, June 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Reduce”.

ePlus Trading Up 1.4%

The firm has a 50-day moving average of $85.12 and a two-hundred day moving average of $83.23. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.35, a P/E/G ratio of 1.24 and a beta of 1.02.

ePlus (NASDAQ:PLUS) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 28th. The software maker reported $1.00 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.98 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $581.63 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $569.25 million. ePlus had a return on equity of 11.36% and a net margin of 5.24%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that ePlus inc. will post 4.66 EPS for the current fiscal year.

ePlus Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, June 17th were paid a $0.27 dividend. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis 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 dividend payout ratio is 22.31%.

Insider Activity at ePlus

In other ePlus news, CFO Elaine D. Marion sold 2,818 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $95.22, for a total value of $268,329.96. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, COO Darren S. Raiguel sold 1,935 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $94.06, for a total transaction of $182,006.10. Following the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 69,236 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,512,338.16. The trade was a 2.72% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 6,107 shares of company stock worth $572,145 over the last ninety days. 1.93% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On ePlus

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Osaic Holdings Inc. grew its position in ePlus by 361.9% during the 2nd 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 acquired a new stake in shares of ePlus during the fourth quarter valued at about $108,000. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund bought a new stake in shares of ePlus during the fourth quarter worth about $138,000. US Bancorp DE grew its holdings in shares of ePlus by 856.4% during the third quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 1,731 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $123,000 after purchasing an additional 1,550 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Exchange Traded Concepts LLC acquired a new position in shares of ePlus in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $163,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.80% of the company’s stock.

ePlus Company 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.