LPL Financial LLC Decreases Stock Position in Maximus, Inc. (NYSE:MMS)

LPL Financial LLC lowered its holdings in Maximus, Inc. (NYSE:MMS - Free Report) by 96.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,626 shares of the health services provider's stock after selling 132,534 shares during the quarter. LPL Financial LLC's holdings in Maximus were worth $345,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. UMB Bank n.a. raised its holdings in shares of Maximus by 79.8% in the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 356 shares of the health services provider's stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 158 shares during the period. V Square Quantitative Management LLC grew its position in Maximus by 65.9% in the 4th quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 453 shares of the health services provider's stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 180 shares in the last quarter. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in Maximus by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. now owns 52,400 shares of the health services provider's stock worth $3,912,000 after purchasing an additional 230 shares during the period. Inspire Advisors LLC increased its stake in Maximus by 3.1% during the fourth quarter. Inspire Advisors LLC now owns 8,650 shares of the health services provider's stock worth $646,000 after purchasing an additional 258 shares during the period. Finally, IFP Advisors Inc lifted its position in shares of Maximus by 62.4% during the fourth quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 786 shares of the health services provider's stock worth $59,000 after purchasing an additional 302 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.21% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. StockNews.com cut shares of Maximus from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. 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.

Maximus Stock Up 1.0 %

Shares of MMS traded up $0.69 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $67.02. The company had a trading volume of 32,529 shares, compared to its average volume of 555,275. Maximus, Inc. has a 1 year low of $63.77 and a 1 year high of $93.97. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.40 and a beta of 0.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 1.72 and a current ratio of 1.72. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $67.67 and its 200-day simple moving average is $73.97.

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

Maximus Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, May 31st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.79%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 15th. Maximus's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 25.81%.

Insider Transactions at Maximus

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

Maximus 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.