Ieq Capital LLC Acquires New Position in ePlus inc. $PLUS

Key Points

• Ieq Capital LLC has purchased 4,600 shares of ePlus inc. for approximately $281,000, marking a new entry into the company's stock by the firm.
• Several institutional investors have modified their positions in ePlus, with American Century Companies Inc. increasing its holdings by 9.5% to over 865,000 shares.
• ePlus recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.25, yielding an annualized rate of $1.00 with a dividend payout ratio of 22.42%.

Ieq Capital LLC acquired a new stake in ePlus inc. (NASDAQ:PLUS - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 4,600 shares of the software maker's stock, valued at approximately $281,000.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its holdings in ePlus by 377.9% during the first quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 712 shares of the software maker's stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 563 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in ePlus by 625.5% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,023 shares of the software maker's stock worth $62,000 after buying an additional 882 shares in the last quarter. Sherbrooke Park Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in ePlus during the fourth quarter worth $213,000. Vista Finance LLC boosted its holdings in ePlus by 7.8% during the first quarter. Vista Finance LLC now owns 4,606 shares of the software maker's stock worth $281,000 after buying an additional 333 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH purchased a new stake in ePlus during the first quarter worth $293,000. 93.80% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Zacks Research upgraded shares of ePlus from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, August 25th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of ePlus from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, September 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold".

ePlus Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ PLUS traded down $1.04 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $73.84. The company's stock had a trading volume of 187,380 shares, compared to its average volume of 139,096. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $69.83 and a two-hundred day moving average of $66.95. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.56, a P/E/G ratio of 2.26 and a beta of 1.17. ePlus inc. has a 1-year low of $53.83 and a 1-year high of $106.98.

ePlus Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 17th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 26th will be given a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, August 26th. ePlus's dividend payout ratio is 22.42%.

ePlus Company Profile

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.