ePlus (NASDAQ:PLUS) Stock Passes Below 200-Day Moving Average - Time to Sell?

Key Points

• Price technical: ePlus shares fell below their 200-day moving average of $81.60, trading as low as $75.06 and last at $76.78 on volume of 190,857, a typically bearish technical signal.
• Analyst sentiment: Several firms have downgraded the stock recently (Zacks, Wall Street Zen, Weiss), and MarketBeat shows a consensus rating of Hold.
• Fundamentals & yield: The company beat quarterly estimates with $1.45 EPS (vs. $1.01 expected) and $614.8M revenue, and it pays a $0.25 quarterly dividend (1.3% yield; ~20% payout ratio).

ePlus inc. (NASDAQ:PLUS - Get Free Report)'s share price crossed below its 200-day moving average during trading on Tuesday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of $81.60 and traded as low as $75.06. ePlus shares last traded at $76.78, with a volume of 190,857 shares traded.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have weighed in on the stock. Zacks Research lowered shares of ePlus from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 6th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of ePlus from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered shares of ePlus from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 10th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold".

ePlus Stock Performance

The firm has a market cap of $2.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.26, a P/E/G ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 1.00. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $82.04 and a 200-day moving average of $81.60.

ePlus (NASDAQ:PLUS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 4th. The software maker reported $1.45 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.01 by $0.44. The firm had revenue of $614.77 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $529.60 million. ePlus had a return on equity of 12.06% and a net margin of 5.63%. Equities research analysts expect that ePlus inc. will post 3.78 earnings per share for the current year.

ePlus Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 18th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 24th were given a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 24th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.3%. ePlus's dividend payout ratio is currently 19.88%.

Insider Buying and Selling at ePlus

In related news, COO Darren S. Raiguel sold 311 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.69, for a total value of $27,582.59. Following the sale, the chief operating officer owned 57,037 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,058,611.53. This trade represents a 0.54% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 1.93% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Medina Value Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of ePlus during the third quarter worth approximately $2,730,000. Public Sector Pension Investment Board increased its position in ePlus by 14.8% in the 3rd quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 102,884 shares of the software maker's stock valued at $7,306,000 after acquiring an additional 13,225 shares during the period. Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co acquired a new stake in ePlus in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $1,161,000. Cresset Asset Management LLC raised its stake in ePlus by 50.3% during the 2nd quarter. Cresset Asset Management LLC now owns 27,483 shares of the software maker's stock valued at $1,982,000 after acquiring an additional 9,198 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Andra AP fonden raised its stake in ePlus by 285.4% during the 3rd quarter. Andra AP fonden now owns 17,730 shares of the software maker's stock valued at $1,259,000 after acquiring an additional 13,130 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.80% of the company's stock.

About ePlus

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.

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