Short Interest in Maximus, Inc. (NYSE:MMS) Decreases By 22.2%

Maximus, Inc. (NYSE:MMS - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a significant decline in short interest during the month of February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 1,790,000 shares, a decline of 22.2% from the February 13th total of 2,300,000 shares. Approximately 3.2% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 766,600 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.3 days.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. StockNews.com lowered Maximus from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Raymond James raised Maximus from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $90.00 target price for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 2nd.

Maximus Stock Down 0.1 %

Shares of Maximus stock traded down $0.09 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $68.47. The company had a trading volume of 46,197 shares, compared to its average volume of 480,115. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $3.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.71 and a beta of 0.71. The company has a 50 day moving average of $71.66 and a 200 day moving average of $78.96. Maximus has a 52-week low of $63.77 and a 52-week high of $93.97.

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Maximus (NYSE:MMS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The health services provider reported $1.61 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.39 by $0.22. Maximus had a return on equity of 21.95% and a net margin of 5.28%. On average, equities analysts predict that Maximus will post 6.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Maximus Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 28th. Investors of record on Saturday, February 15th were paid a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.75%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. Maximus's payout ratio is presently 25.81%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Ilene R. Baylinson sold 14,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated 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 owns 2,512 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $171,167.68. The trade was a 85.23 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 1.60% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Maximus

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. UMB Bank n.a. grew its holdings in shares of Maximus by 79.8% in the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 356 shares of the health services provider's stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 158 shares in the last quarter. Eastern Bank purchased a new position in shares of Maximus in the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Maximus by 65.9% in the fourth quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 453 shares of the health services provider's stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 180 shares in the last quarter. R Squared Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Maximus in the fourth quarter valued at $54,000. Finally, IFP Advisors Inc grew its holdings in shares of Maximus by 62.4% in the fourth quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 786 shares of the health services provider's stock valued at $59,000 after purchasing an additional 302 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 97.21% 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.