Yahoo Finance Maximus (NYSE:MMS) Will Pay A Dividend Of US$0.28
Maximus, Inc. (NYSE:MMS) will pay a dividend of US$0.28 on the 28th of February. Based on this payment, the dividend yield will be 1.5%, which is fairly typical for the industry.
View our latest analysis for Maximus
Maximus' Payment Has Solid Earnings Coverage
We like a dividend to be consistent over the long term, so checking whether it is sustainable is important. However, prior to this announcement, Maximus' dividend was comfortably covered by both cash flow and earnings. As a result, a large proportion of what it earned was being reinvested back into the business.
Over the next year, EPS is forecast to fall by 9.6%. Assuming the dividend continues along recent trends, we believe the payout ratio could be 36%, which we are pretty comfortable with and we think is feasible on an earnings basis.
Maximus Has A Solid Track Record
Even over a long history of paying dividends, the company's distributions have been remarkably stable. Since 2012, the dividend has gone from US$0.15 to US$1.12. This means that it has been growing its distributions at 22% per annum over that time. Rapidly growing dividends for a long time is a very valuable feature for an income stock.
The Dividend Looks Likely To Grow
Investors who have held shares in the company for the past few years will be happy with the dividend income they have received. Maximus has seen EPS rising for the last five years, at 12% per annum. With a decent amount of growth and a low payout ratio, we think this bodes well for Maximus' prospects of growing its dividend payments in the future.
Maximus Looks Like A Great Dividend Stock
In summary, it is good to see that the dividend is staying consistent, and we don't think there is any reason to suspect this might change over the medium term. The earnings easily cover the company's distributions, and the company is generating plenty of cash. If earnings do fall over the next 12 months, the dividend could be buffeted a little bit, but we don't think it should cause too much of a problem in the long term. Taking this all into consideration, this looks like it could be a good dividend opportunity.
It's important to note that companies having a consistent dividend policy will generate greater investor confidence than those having an erratic one. Meanwhile, despite the importance of dividend payments, they are not the only factors our readers should know when assessing a company. For instance, we've picked out 2 warning signs for Maximus that investors should take into consideration. Looking for more high-yielding dividend ideas? Try our curated list of strong dividend payers.
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This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.
