Maximus said on July 11, 2023 that its board of directors had declared a regular quarterly dividend of $0.28 per share ($1.12 annualized). Previously, the company paid $0.28 per share.
Shares must be purchased before the ex-div date of August 14, 2023 to be eligible for the dividend. Shareholders of record as of August 15, 2023 will receive payment on August 31, 2023.
At the current share price of $86.72/share, the stock’s dividend yield is 1.29%.
Looking back five years and taking a sample each week, the average dividend yield was 1.42%, the low 0.27% and the high 2.26%. The standard deviation of returns is 0.33 (n=236).
The current dividend yield is 0.40 standard deviation below the historical average.
Additionally, the company’s dividend payout ratio is 0.40. The payout ratio tells us how much of a company’s income is paid out as dividends. A payout ratio of one (1.0) means that 100% of the company’s income is paid out as dividends. A payout ratio above one means the company is dipping into its savings to maintain its dividend, which is not a healthy situation. Companies with little growth prospects should pay most of their income in the form of dividends, which generally means a payout ratio between 0.5 and 1.0. Companies with good growth prospects should retain part of their profits in order to invest in these growth prospects, which translates into a payout ratio of zero to 0.5.
The company has not increased its dividend in the past three years.
What is fund sentiment?
There are 734 funds or institutions reporting positions in Maximus. This is a decrease of 9 owner(s) or 1.21% in the last quarter. Average portfolio weight of all funds dedicated to MMS is 0.28%, an increase of 4.09%. The total number of shares held by institutions has increased over the past three months by 0.32% to 76,312,000 shares. 
The MMS put/call ratio is 0.14, indicating a bullish outlook.
Analyst price forecast suggests 17.62% upside
As of July 6, 2023, the one-year average price target for Maximus was 102.00. The forecast ranges from a low of 101.00 to a high of $105.00. The average price target represents a 17.62% increase from its last published closing price of 86.72.
Check out our ranking of companies with the biggest upward price target.
The expected annual revenue for Maximus is 4,822 million, an increase of 1.33%. Projected annual non-GAAP EPS is 3.86.
What are the other shareholders doing?
Victory Capital Management holds 6,931,000 shares representing 11.40% ownership of the company. In its previous filing, the company said it held 6,737,000 shares, representing a raise of 2.81%. The company increase its portfolio allocation in MMS of 7.79% over the last quarter.
VETAX – Victory Sycamore Established Value Fund holds 3,680,000 shares representing 6.05% ownership of the company. In its previous filing, the company said it held 3,830,000 shares, representing a decrease of 4.08%. The company decreases its portfolio allocation in MMS by 1.28% over the last quarter.
Alliancebernstein holds 3,046,000 shares representing 5.01% ownership of the company. In its previous filing, the company said it held 2,808,000 shares, representing a raise of 7.84%. The company increase its portfolio allocation in MMS of 10.86% over the last quarter.
Mackenzie Financial holds 2,669,000 shares representing 4.39% ownership of the company. In its previous filing, the company said it held 2,743,000 shares, representing a decrease 2.75%. The company decreases its portfolio allocation in MMS of 3.41% over the last quarter.
Fuller & Thaler Asset Management holds 1,887,000 shares representing 3.10% ownership of the company. In its previous filing, the company said it held 2,894,000 shares, representing a decrease of 53.36%. The company decreases its portfolio allocation in MMS of 36.44% over the last quarter.
General information Maximus
(This description is provided by the company.)
Since 1975, Maximus has operated under its founding mission of Helping Government Serve the People®, enabling citizens around the world to successfully engage with their governments at all levels and through a variety of health and social service programs. Maximus provides innovative business process management and technology solutions that contribute to better outcomes for citizens and higher levels of productivity, accuracy, accountability and efficiency of government-sponsored programs. With over 30,000 employees worldwide, Maximus is a proud partner of government agencies in the United States, Australia, Canada, Italy, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, South Korea, Sweden and the United Kingdom.
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This story originally appeared on Fintel.
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.