Lazard Asset Management LLC Acquires Shares of 47,854 ePlus inc. $PLUS

Lazard Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of ePlus inc. (NASDAQ:PLUS) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 47,854 shares of the software maker’s stock, valued at approximately $3,601,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of PLUS. ProShare Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of ePlus by 3.2% in the 4th quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 5,129 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $450,000 after acquiring an additional 159 shares in the last quarter. Inceptionr LLC boosted its stake in ePlus by 5.9% during the first quarter. Inceptionr LLC now owns 3,419 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $257,000 after acquiring an additional 190 shares in the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its stake in ePlus by 3.2% during the fourth quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 7,544 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $662,000 after acquiring an additional 233 shares in the last quarter. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al boosted its stake in ePlus by 6.9% during the fourth quarter. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al now owns 3,859 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $338,000 after acquiring an additional 250 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund grew its holdings in ePlus by 2.0% in the first quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 14,164 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $1,066,000 after purchasing an additional 276 shares during the period. 93.80% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

PLUS has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Zacks Research downgraded shares of ePlus from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 17th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of ePlus in a research report on Friday, July 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, ePlus currently has an average rating of “Reduce”.

Insider Activity

In other news, COO Darren S. Raiguel sold 1,935 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $94.06, for a total value of $182,006.10. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 69,236 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,512,338.16. This represents a 2.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Elaine D. Marion sold 2,818 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $95.22, for a total transaction of $268,329.96. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 6,107 shares of company stock valued at $572,145 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 1.93% of the company’s stock.

ePlus Price Performance

PLUS opened at $92.41 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $84.96 and a 200-day moving average price of $83.24. The firm has a market cap of $2.41 billion, a PE ratio of 19.09, a P/E/G ratio of 1.22 and a beta of 1.02. ePlus inc. has a 1 year low of $62.11 and a 1 year high of $95.64.

ePlus (NASDAQ:PLUS) last announced its quarterly earnings results 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. ePlus had a net margin of 5.24% and a return on equity of 11.36%. The company had revenue of $581.63 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $569.25 million. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that ePlus inc. will post 4.66 EPS 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 issued a $0.27 dividend. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.2%. This is a boost from ePlus’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, June 17th. ePlus’s dividend payout ratio is presently 22.31%.

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.