Quarter Ended December 31, 2015

• Net sales were $298.6 million, a 2.5% decline, due in part to an increase of approximately $7 million of shipments in transit at the end of the quarter, and to a higher percentage of product and services sales recorded on a net basis.
• Non-GAAP gross sales of product and services were $393.9 million, up 4.4%.
• Sales of security products and services increased to 17.8% of non-GAAP gross sales of product and services.
• Gross margin on sales of product and services expanded 20 basis points to 19.6%; consolidated gross margin increased 10 basis points to 21.5%.
• Operating expenses increased 3.4%, or $1.5 million, due primarily to growth in headcount and incremental acquisition-related costs of $0.3 million.
• Diluted earnings per share was $1.40 as compared to non-GAAP diluted earnings per share of $1.64.

Nine Months Ended December 31, 2015

• Net sales increased 3.3% to $904.8 million; technology segment net sales increased 3.2% to $876.9 million.
• Non-GAAP gross sales of products and services increased 5.7% to $1.16 billion.
• Gross profit increased 5.0% to $195.1 million, led by a 5.2% increase in technology segment gross profit.
• Consolidated gross margin increased to 21.6% from 21.2%; gross margin on sales of product and services expanded 50 basis points to 19.7%
• Diluted earnings per share was $4.74, up 8.2%, as compared to non-GAAP diluted earnings per share of $4.38 in the prior year.

HERNDON, VA, February 4, 2016 - ePlus inc. (NASDAQ:PLUS-news), a leading provider of technology solutions, today announced financial results for the three and nine months ended December 31, 2015.

Management Comment

“We continued to execute well in the third quarter across several key metrics, achieving mid-single digit growth in non-GAAP gross sales, slightly improved gross margins despite pricing pressures from a few large customer orders, and increasing sales of security products and services.  Lower reported net sales were impacted by an increase of approximately $7 million of shipments in transit at the end of the quarter, and a greater percentage of sales of third-party software assurance, maintenance, and services recorded as net sales.  Additionally, we incurred higher operating expenses year-on-year due to continued investment in customer-facing headcount to accommodate growing customer demand and costs associated with our December acquisition of IGX.”

“The acquisition of IGX late in the quarter provides ePlus with a broader set of security solutions, new customers, and expands our presence in New York metro and New England.  It also creates our first international presence with a branch in the UK, which we believe will enable us to better support our global customers internationally.  We have also gained IGX’s international customers, which over-time should create additional revenue opportunities to provide ePlus’ expanded set of advanced technology solutions both overseas, and for many customers, to their U.S. operations.”

“Year-to-date financial performance supports our track record of growing faster than the overall IT market by investing in those areas where technology spending is most critical.  For the first nine months of fiscal 2016, we reported high single-digit growth in diluted earnings per share and adjusted EBITDA that significantly outpaced our net sales growth rate, due to our focus on higher value services and security solutions.  Sales of security products and services represented 16.2% of year-to-date non-GAAP gross sales of product and services, up from 13.2% last year,” Mr. Norton said.

Third Quarter Fiscal 2016 Results

For the third quarter ended December 31, 2015 as compared to the third quarter of the prior fiscal year ended December 31, 2014 unless otherwise noted:

Consolidated net sales fell 2.5% to $298.6 million, from $306.2 million.

Technology segment net sales fell 2.8% to $289.4 million, from $297.8 million.

Non-GAAP gross sales of product and services increased 4.4% to $393.9 million.  Non-GAAP gross sales of product and services are sales of product and services adjusted to exclude the costs incurred of applicable third-party software assurance, maintenance, and services.

Financing segment net sales increased 10.2% to $9.3 million, from $8.4 million due to higher post-contract earnings.

Consolidated gross profit fell 2.1% to $64.1 million, compared with $65.4 million.

Total headcount increased 8.1% to 1,060 on December 31, 2015 from a year earlier.  Of the total, 768 were customer facing personnel.

Consolidated operating income fell 14.2% to $17.6 million, from $20.6 million.

Diluted earnings per share was $1.40, compared with $2.13 in the third quarter of fiscal 2015, which included a gain from a claim in a class action suit in other income. Excluding this benefit, non-GAAP diluted earnings per share was $1.64 in the third quarter of fiscal 2015.

Net earnings fell 33.6% to $10.3 million, compared with $15.5 million.

Adjusted EBITDA fell 12.9% to $19.0 million, from $21.8 million.

Fiscal Year to Date Results

For the nine months ended December 31, 2015 as compared to the nine months ended December 31, 2014 unless otherwise noted:

Consolidated net sales were up 3.3% to $904.8 million, compared with $876.0 million.

Technology segment net sales rose 3.2% to $876.9 million, up from $849.6 million. Non-GAAP gross sales of products and services grew 5.7% to $1.16 billion.

Financing segment net sales were $27.9 million, up from $26.4 million, due to higher post-contract earnings and transactional gains.

Consolidated gross profit rose 5.0% to $195.1 million, compared with $185.8 million.

Consolidated operating income rose 6.7% to $59.4 million, up from $55.6 million.

Diluted earnings per share was $4.74, down 4.6% from $4.97 in the first nine months of fiscal 2015, which included a gain on retirement of a liability and a gain from a claim in a class action suit included in other income.  Exclusive of these benefits, non-GAAP diluted earnings per share was $4.38 in the first nine months of fiscal 2015.

Net earnings fell 5.8% to $34.8 million, as compared to $36.9 million.

Adjusted EBITDA rose 7.4% to $63.1 million, up from $58.8 million.

Balance Sheet Highlights

At December 31, 2015, ePlus had cash and cash equivalents of $66.6 million, down from $76.2 million as of March 31, 2015. Total stockholders' equity was $316.7 million and total shares outstanding were 7.5 million, compared with stockholders' equity of $279.3 million and shares outstanding of 7.4 million on March 31, 2015.

Summary and Outlook

“Looking ahead, we remain confident in our long-term strategy of delivering advanced technology solutions that our customers are looking for in today’s market. We believe that our offerings in the fastest growing segments of the market, including security, professional services, and our emerging cloud solutions, position us to grow faster than the overall IT market, increase wallet share with our existing customers, and add new customers organically. At the same time, our strong balance sheet provides us the resources to continue to make acquisitions that bring additional technical expertise, regional recognition, and new customers to ePlus,” concluded Mr. Norton.

Results of Operations – Three Months Ended December 31, 2015

The Company's operations are conducted through two business segments. The technology segment includes sales of information technology products, third-party software, third-party maintenance contracts, advanced professional services and managed services, and the Company's proprietary software to commercial and state and local governments. The financing segment consists of the financing of equipment, software, and related services to commercial, state and local governments, and government contractors.

Technology Segment

The results of operations for the technology segment for the three months ended December 31, 2015 and 2014 were as follows (dollars in thousands):

Non-GAAP gross sales of product and services grew 4.4% to $393.9 million, from $377.3 million in the third quarter of fiscal 2015.

Gross margin on sales of product and services was 19.6%, up from 19.4% in the third quarter of fiscal 2015.

Operating expenses rose 3.8% to $43.2 million, from $41.6 million in the third quarter of fiscal 2015, reflecting increased salaries and benefits due to an 8.5% increase in personnel to 1,006 from 927, of which 80 are customer facing and 48 were from the IGX acquisition, as well as expenses associated with the acquisition of IGX in December 2015.  In addition, professional and other fees included acquisition related expenses of $0.3 million during the current quarter.

Segment earnings were $14.7 million, compared with $18.0 million in the third quarter of fiscal 2015.

Financing Segment

The results of operations for the financing segment for the three months ended December 31, 2015 and 2014 were as follows (dollars in thousands):

Operating expenses were down 1.5% over the previous year, mainly due to lower interest expenses as a result of lower debt combined with lower interest rates. Operating income was $3.0 million, an increase of 16.8% from $2.5 million in the previous year.

During the quarter ended December 31, 2014, ePlus recorded a $6.2 million gain from a claim in a class action lawsuit.

Segment earnings were $3.0 million, compared with $8.7 million in the third quarter of fiscal 2015.

Results of Operations – Nine Months Ended December 31, 2015

Technology Segment

The results of operations for the technology segment for the nine months ended December 31, 2015 and 2014 were as follows (dollars in thousands):

Gross margin on sales of product and services was 19.7%, up from 19.2% in the prior year period.

Operating expenses rose 5.4% to $126.1 million, from $119.7 million in the first nine months of fiscal 2015. This was primarily due to increased salaries and benefits related to an 8.5% increase of headcount in the technology segment, increased variable compensation, and additional expenses associated with the acquisition of IGX in December of 2015. In addition, the Company incurred incremental amortization expenses associated with the acquisition of Evolve Technology Group in August, 2014.

Segment earnings were $50.3 million, up 4.7% from $48.1 million in the first nine months of fiscal 2015.

The Company maintained its balanced portfolio of customer-end markets. The breakdown of net sales by customer end market for the twelve months ended December 31, 2015 was as follows:

Financing Segment

The results of operations for the financing segment for the nine months ended December 31, 2015 and 2014 were as follows (dollars in thousands):

Operating expenses were down 8.1% over the previous year, due to a reserve for credit loss recorded in the previous year that was not replicated in the current year, and lower interest expenses as a result of lower debt combined with lower interest rates. Operating income was $9.0 million, an increase of 19.5% from $7.6 million in the previous year.

During the first quarter of fiscal 2015, ePlus entered into an agreement to repurchase the rights, title, and interest to payments due under a financing arrangement. This financing arrangement was previously assigned to a third-party financial institution and accounted for as secured borrowing. In conjunction with this repurchase agreement, ePlus recognized a gain of $1.4 million, which was included in other income.

During the third quarter of fiscal 2015, ePlus recorded a $6.2 million gain from a claim in a class action lawsuit, which was included in other income.

Segment earnings were $9.0 million, compared with $15.2 million in the first nine months of fiscal 2015.

Recent Corporate Developments & Recognitions

• On January 21, 2016, ePlus announced that it had successfully completed the Type 2 SSAE 16 (Statement on Standards for Attestation Engagements) examination for its Managed Services Center, issued by an independent audit firm.
• On January 21, 2016, ePlus announced that it had successfully completed the Type 2 SSAE 16 (Statements on Standards for Attestation Engagements) examination for its OneSource family of software products that provide information technology acquisition, asset management, procurement, and catalog management software services.
• On December 17, 2015, ePlus announced that it had expanded its Managed Services offering to include Hybrid IT Monitoring capabilities. This enhancement supplements on-premise management with cloud-based analysis and discovery as well as provides monitoring and alerting of hybrid technologies via single platform.
• On December 7, 2015, ePlus announced its subsidiary, ePlus Technology, inc., acquired the business of IGX, which provides advanced security solutions, secured networking products, and related professional services to a diverse set of domestic and international customers including commercial enterprise and state, local, and education (SLED) organizations. IGX is headquartered near Hartford, CT, with offices in metro New York, metro Boston, and London to serve its UK and global customers.
• On November 20, 2015, ePlus announced that ePlus Technology received three awards during NetApp’s Insight Conference held in Las Vegas from October 12 – 15, 2015. The awards included were:
  • FlexPod Impact Award
  • SLED East Region Partner of the Year
  • Outstanding Contribution by a NetApp Tech Team Partner

Conference Call Information

ePlus will hold a conference call and webcast at 4:30 p.m. ET on February 4, 2016:

The replay of this webcast will be available approximately two hours after the call and be available through February 12, 2016.

About ePlus inc.

ePlus® and ePlus products referenced herein are either registered trademarks or trademarks of ePlus inc. in the United States and/or other countries. The names of other companies and products mentioned herein may be the trademarks of their respective owners.

Forward-looking statements

Statements in this press release that are not historical facts may be deemed to be "forward-looking statements." Actual and anticipated future results may vary materially due to certain risks and uncertainties, including, without limitation, possible adverse effects resulting from financial market disruption and fluctuations in foreign currency rates, and general slowdown of the U.S. economy such as our current and potential customers' delaying or reducing technology purchases or put downward pressure on prices, increasing credit risk associated with our customers and vendors, reduction of vendor incentive programs, the possibility of additional goodwill impairment charges, and restrictions on our access to capital necessary to fund our operations; significant adverse changes in, reductions in, or losses of relationships with major customers or vendors; our ability to implement comprehensive plans to archive customer account coverage, cost containment, asset rationalization, systems integration and other key strategies; our ability to secure our electronic and other confidential information or that of our customers or partners; changes to our senior management team; the demand for and acceptance of, our products and services; our ability to adapt our services to meet changes in market developments; our ability to adapt to changes in the IT industry and/or rapid change in product standards; our ability to hire and retain sufficient personnel; our ability to realize our investment in leased equipment; our ability to protect our intellectual property; our ability to consummate and integrate acquisitions; the creditworthiness of our customers; our ability to raise capital and obtain non-recourse financing for our transactions; our ability to reserve adequately for credit losses; the impact of competition in our markets; the possibility of defects in our products or catalog content data; and other risks or uncertainties detailed in our reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. All information set forth in this press release is current as of the date of this release and ePlus undertakes no duty or obligation to update this information.

ePlus inc. AND SUBSIDIARIES 
RECONCILIATION OF NON-GAAP INFORMATION

We included reconciliations below for the following non-GAAP information: (i) non-GAAP Gross Sales of Product and Services, (ii) Adjusted EBITDA, and (iii) non-GAAP Net Earnings per Common Share - Diluted. We define non-GAAP gross sales of product and services as our sales of product and services calculated in accordance with GAAP, adjusted to exclude the costs incurred related to sales of third-party software assurance, maintenance and services.  We define Adjusted EBITDA as net earnings calculated in accordance with GAAP, adjusted for the following: interest expense, depreciation and amortization, provision for income taxes, and other income. We consider the interest on notes payable from our financing segment and depreciation expense presented within cost of sales, which includes depreciation on assets financed as operating leases, to be operating expenses. Non-GAAP net earnings per common share is based on net earnings calculated in accordance with GAAP, adjusted to exclude other income, net of taxes.

Our use of non-GAAP information as analytical tools has limitations, and you should not consider them in isolation or as substitutes for analysis of our financial results as reported under GAAP. In addition, other companies, including companies in our industry, might calculate similar non-GAAP Gross Sales of Product and Services, Adjusted EBITDA, and non-GAAP Net Earnings per Common Share - Diluted or similarly titled measures differently, which may reduce their usefulness as comparative measures.