Have Insiders Been Selling ePlus inc. (NASDAQ:PLUS) Shares This Year?

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We’ve lost count of how many times insiders have accumulated shares in a company that goes on to improve markedly. The flip side of that is that there are more than a few examples of insiders dumping stock prior to a period of weak performance. So we’ll take a look at whether insiders have been buying or selling shares in ePlus inc. (NASDAQ:PLUS).

What Is Insider Selling?

Most investors know that it is quite permissible for company leaders, such as directors of the board, to buy and sell stock on the market. However, most countries require that the company discloses such transactions to the market.

We would never suggest that investors should base their decisions solely on what the directors of a company have been doing. But it is perfectly logical to keep tabs on what insiders are doing. For example, a Harvard University study found that ‘insider purchases earn abnormal returns of more than 6% per year.’

See our latest analysis for ePlus

The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At ePlus

Executive Chairman of the Board Phillip Norton made the biggest insider sale in the last 12 months. That single transaction was for US$1.8m worth of shares at a price of US$92.27 each. So we know that an insider sold shares at around the present share price of US$90.75. They could have a variety of motivations for selling, but it’s still not particularly encouraging to see. We generally tread carefully if insiders have been selling on market, even if they sold slightly above the current price.

We note that in the last year insiders divested 84.40k shares for a total of US$8.0m. In total, ePlus insiders sold more than they bought over the last year. They sold for an average price of about US$95.34. It’s not particularly great to see insiders were selling shares around current prices. Since insiders sell for many reasons, we wouldn’t put too much weight on it. You can see a visual depiction of insider transactions (by individuals) over the last 12 months, below. If you want to know exactly who sold, for how much, and when, simply click on the graph below!

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If you like to buy stocks alongside management, then you might just love this free list of companies. (Hint: insiders have been buying them).

Insider Ownership of ePlus

I like to look at how many shares insiders own in a company, to help inform my view of how aligned they are with insiders. A high insider ownership often makes company leadership more mindful of shareholder interests. ePlus insiders own about US$29m worth of shares. That equates to 2.4% of the company. We’ve certainly seen higher levels of insider ownership elsewhere, but these holdings are enough to suggest alignment between insiders and the other shareholders.

What Might The Insider Transactions At ePlus Tell Us?

There haven’t been any insider transactions in the last three months — that doesn’t mean much. Our analysis of ePlus insider transactions leaves us cautious. But we do like the fact that insiders own a fair chunk of the company. Therefore, you should should definitely take a look at this FREE report showing analyst forecasts for ePlus.

But note: ePlus may not be the best stock to buy. So take a peek at this free list of interesting companies with high ROE and low debt.