Maximus (NYSE:MMS) Reaches New 1-Year Low – Here’s What Happened

Shares of Maximus, Inc. (NYSE:MMS) hit a new 52-week low during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $66.36 and last traded at $68.14, with a volume of 643504 shares. The stock had previously closed at $67.85.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently commented on MMS. Raymond James upgraded shares of Maximus from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $90.00 price target for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 2nd. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Maximus from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, February 14th.

Maximus Price Performance

The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $73.87 and its 200 day moving average price is $81.87. The company has a quick ratio of 1.72, a current ratio of 1.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82. The stock has a market cap of $3.78 billion, a PE ratio of 14.36 and a beta of 0.72.

Maximus (NYSE:MMS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The health services provider reported $1.61 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.39 by $0.22. Maximus had a return on equity of 21.95% and a net margin of 5.28%. As a group, equities analysts expect that Maximus, Inc. will post 6.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Maximus Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Shareholders of record on Saturday, February 15th will be given a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.80%. Maximus’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 25.81%.

Insider Transactions at Maximus

In other news, insider Michelle F. Link sold 2,208 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.83, for a total value of $163,016.64. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 6,567 shares in the company, valued at approximately $484,841.61. This represents a 25.16 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Bruce Caswell purchased 3,500 shares of Maximus stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 17th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $70.64 per share, for a total transaction of $247,240.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer now owns 275,929 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $19,491,624.56. This trade represents a 1.28 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have acquired 7,063 shares of company stock worth $502,017. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Maximus

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Mackenzie Financial Corp raised its holdings in shares of Maximus by 2.0% in the fourth quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 2,782,150 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $207,687,000 after buying an additional 55,583 shares during the period. PharVision Advisers LLC purchased a new position in Maximus during the 4th quarter worth $252,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its holdings in Maximus by 35.4% during the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 168,936 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $12,611,000 after purchasing an additional 44,182 shares during the period. Voloridge Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in Maximus by 306.8% during the 4th quarter. Voloridge Investment Management LLC now owns 376,055 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $28,073,000 after purchasing an additional 283,608 shares during the period. Finally, Vident Advisory LLC purchased a new position in Maximus during the 4th quarter worth $1,075,000. 97.21% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Maximus Company Profile

Maximus, Inc operates as a provider of government services in the United States and internationally. It operates through three segments: U.S. Federal Services, U.S. Services, and Outside the U.S. The U.S. Services segment offers program eligibility support and enrollment; centralized multilingual customer contact centers, multichannel, and digital self-service options for enrollment; application assistance and independent health plan choice counseling; beneficiary outreach, education, eligibility, enrollment, and redeterminations; and person-centered independent disability, long-term sick, and other health assessments.