ePlus (NASDAQ:PLUS) Trading 4.7% Higher on Better-Than-Expected Earnings

ePlus inc. (NASDAQ:PLUS - Get Free Report)'s share price was up 4.7% during mid-day trading on Friday following a better than expected earnings announcement. The company traded as high as $71.35 and last traded at $68.75. Approximately 45,216 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 79% from the average daily volume of 210,833 shares. The stock had previously closed at $65.69.

The software maker reported $0.95 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.87 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $498.11 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $523.85 million. ePlus had a return on equity of 11.23% and a net margin of 4.93%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Wall Street Zen raised ePlus from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, April 18th.

Institutional Trading of ePlus

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Versor Investments LP acquired a new stake in ePlus during the 4th quarter worth $318,000. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS purchased a new stake in ePlus in the 4th quarter valued at about $384,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of ePlus by 3.3% in the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 137,452 shares of the software maker's stock worth $10,155,000 after acquiring an additional 4,425 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its position in shares of ePlus by 18.2% during the fourth quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 790,332 shares of the software maker's stock worth $58,390,000 after buying an additional 121,945 shares during the period. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its position in ePlus by 126.6% in the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 124,251 shares of the software maker's stock valued at $9,180,000 after acquiring an additional 69,410 shares in the last quarter. 93.80% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

ePlus Stock Up 2.8%

The business's fifty day moving average is $62.13 and its two-hundred day moving average is $71.25. The company has a quick ratio of 1.69, a current ratio of 1.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. The stock has a market cap of $1.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.22, a PEG ratio of 1.83 and a beta of 1.12.

About ePlus

ePlus inc., together with its subsidiaries, provides information technology (IT) solutions that enable organizations to optimize their IT environment and supply chain processes in the United States and internationally. It operates through two segments, Technology and Financing. The Technology segment offers hardware, perpetual and subscription software, maintenance, software assurance, and internally provided and outsourced services; managed services or infrastructure and cloud; and enhanced maintenance support, service desk, storage-as-a-service, cloud hosted and managed, and managed security services; and professional, staff augmentation, cloud consulting, consulting, and security services.

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