Envestnet Asset Management Inc. Raises Stock Holdings in ePlus inc. $PLUS

Envestnet Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in ePlus inc. (NASDAQ:PLUS) by 177.8% in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 237,668 shares of the software maker’s stock after buying an additional 152,128 shares during the period. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. owned approximately 0.89% of ePlus worth $16,877,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Amundi grew its position in ePlus by 333.0% in the first quarter. Amundi now owns 5,361 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $313,000 after acquiring an additional 4,123 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in ePlus by 20.4% during the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 45,612 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $2,784,000 after buying an additional 7,742 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its position in ePlus by 4.6% during the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 15,666 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $956,000 after acquiring an additional 687 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC raised its stake in shares of ePlus by 103.1% in the first quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 226,399 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $13,817,000 after acquiring an additional 114,900 shares during the period. Finally, Jones Financial Companies Lllp lifted its holdings in shares of ePlus by 628.3% in the 1st quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 3,066 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $187,000 after acquiring an additional 2,645 shares during the last quarter. 93.80% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, COO Darren S. Raiguel sold 400 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.05, for a total transaction of $35,220.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer owned 57,348 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,049,491.40. This represents a 0.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director John E. Callies sold 560 shares of ePlus stock in a transaction on Monday, December 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.03, for a total transaction of $50,416.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 21,428 shares in the company, valued at $1,929,162.84. This represents a 2.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 1,271 shares of company stock worth $113,219 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 1.93% of the company’s stock.

ePlus Trading Up 2.2%

Shares of PLUS stock opened at $83.88 on Monday. ePlus inc. has a twelve month low of $53.83 and a twelve month high of $93.98. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $87.72 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $79.99. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.68, a P/E/G ratio of 1.08 and a beta of 1.01.

ePlus (NASDAQ:PLUS) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The software maker reported $1.45 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.01 by $0.44. The company had revenue of $614.77 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $529.60 million. ePlus had a net margin of 5.63% and a return on equity of 12.06%. Research analysts predict that ePlus inc. will post 3.78 EPS for the current fiscal year.

ePlus Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 18th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 24th will be given a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 24th. ePlus’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 19.88%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of ePlus in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Wall Street Zen cut ePlus from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 23rd. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded ePlus from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 6th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold”.

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.