Expect Equity LLC Purchases New Shares in Maximus, Inc. (NYSE:MMS)

Expect Equity LLC purchased a new position in shares of Maximus, Inc. (NYSE:MMS - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 9,071 shares of the health services provider's stock, valued at approximately $677,000.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. boosted its holdings in Maximus by 184.4% in the fourth quarter. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. now owns 222,616 shares of the health services provider's stock valued at $16,618,000 after purchasing an additional 144,327 shares in the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG lifted its holdings in shares of Maximus by 8.3% during the fourth quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 202,834 shares of the health services provider's stock worth $15,142,000 after purchasing an additional 15,539 shares during the period. Dean Capital Management raised its position in Maximus by 70.9% in the fourth quarter. Dean Capital Management now owns 39,513 shares of the health services provider's stock worth $2,950,000 after acquiring an additional 16,398 shares in the last quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in Maximus by 17.1% in the fourth quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,387 shares of the health services provider's stock worth $253,000 after acquiring an additional 495 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Captrust Financial Advisors purchased a new position in Maximus in the fourth quarter worth $276,000. 97.21% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, StockNews.com raised Maximus from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday.

Maximus Trading Down 0.6%

Shares of NYSE:MMS traded down $0.43 during trading on Friday, reaching $75.31. 598,966 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 561,537. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 1.72 and a current ratio of 1.72. Maximus, Inc. has a 12-month low of $63.77 and a 12-month high of $93.97. The firm has a market cap of $4.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.20 and a beta of 0.61. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $68.07 and its 200 day moving average price is $72.96.

Maximus (NYSE:MMS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The health services provider reported $2.01 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.37 by $0.64. The firm had revenue of $1.36 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.29 billion. Maximus had a return on equity of 21.95% and a net margin of 5.28%. Maximus's quarterly revenue was up 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.57 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Maximus, Inc. will post 6.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Maximus Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, May 31st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.59%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 15th. Maximus's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 23.86%.

Insider Activity

In other Maximus news, Director Jan Madsen sold 2,439 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $67.71, for a total value of $165,144.69. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 18,097 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,225,347.87. This trade represents a 11.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Ilene R. Baylinson sold 14,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $68.14, for a total value of $988,030.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 2,512 shares in the company, valued at $171,167.68. This represents a 85.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 1.60% of the company's stock.

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.