NIC Inc. (EGOV): Is This Stock Worth Buying Right Now?

Despite this, it pays to monitor contract renewals. Year-to-date, MAXIMUS, Inc. (NYSE:MMS) has successfully re-bid for more than 90% of contracts based on dollar value, including the Texas Medicaid Enrollment and MassHealth contracts worth about $320 million, according its most recent investor presentation.

Accenture Plc (NYSE:ACN) provides consulting, technology, and outsourcing services to both private and public sector clients globally. The Health & Public Service operating group and the America region accounted for 17% and 46%, respectively, of its 2013 year-to-date revenue. In my opinion, Accenture has a more volatile revenue stream than its peers, as it derives more than half of its revenue from consulting services which are more discretionary in nature. It sports the highest forward dividend yield of the three at 2%. In contrast, NIC does not pay a dividend, while MAXIMUS, Inc. (NYSE:MMS) provides shareholders with a meager forward dividend yield of 0.50%.

Conclusion

The market is efficient. In addition to NIC Inc. (NASDAQ:EGOV)’s self-funding model and provision of non-discretionary government services, it has delivered positive free cash flow every single year in the past decade and remains debt free. Unfortunately, these positive attributes have been duly recognized and rewarded by the market with premium valuations for NIC.

The article Is This Stock Worth Buying Right Now? originally appeared on Fool.com.

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