Caprock Group LLC Makes New Investment in Chemed Co. (NYSE:CHE)

Caprock Group LLC bought a new position in Chemed Co. (NYSE:CHE) during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 767 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $416,000.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Rise Advisors LLC bought a new position in Chemed in the 1st quarter worth about $26,000. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in Chemed by 34.4% in the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 86 shares of the company’s stock worth $47,000 after buying an additional 22 shares in the last quarter. Principal Securities Inc. purchased a new stake in Chemed during the fourth quarter worth $51,000. Mather Group LLC. bought a new stake in Chemed during the 1st quarter valued at $67,000. Finally, EntryPoint Capital LLC increased its holdings in shares of Chemed by 14.0% in the 1st quarter. EntryPoint Capital LLC now owns 147 shares of the company’s stock valued at $94,000 after acquiring an additional 18 shares during the period. 95.85% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Chemed

In related news, EVP Nicholas Michael Westfall sold 1,713 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $569.35, for a total transaction of $975,296.55. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 6,109 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,478,159.15. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other Chemed news, EVP Nicholas Michael Westfall sold 1,713 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $569.35, for a total value of $975,296.55. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 6,109 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,478,159.15. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director George J. Walsh III sold 200 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $577.95, for a total transaction of $115,590.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 3,446 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,991,615.70. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 6,744 shares of company stock valued at $3,828,231 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 3.32% of the company’s stock.

Chemed Stock Up 0.3 %

NYSE CHE opened at $569.10 on Friday. Chemed Co. has a 52 week low of $492.84 and a 52 week high of $654.62. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $563.24 and a 200 day moving average price of $579.64. The firm has a market cap of $8.62 billion, a PE ratio of 30.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.33 and a beta of 0.44.

Chemed (NYSE:CHE) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The company reported $5.47 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.59 by ($0.12). Chemed had a net margin of 12.88% and a return on equity of 29.21%. The firm had revenue of $595.88 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $599.20 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $4.71 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 7.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Chemed Co. will post 21.77 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Chemed Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 30th. Investors of record on Monday, August 12th were given a dividend of $0.50 per share. This is a boost from Chemed’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 12th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.35%. Chemed’s dividend payout ratio is presently 10.76%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price objective on Chemed from $712.00 to $697.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, May 21st.

About Chemed

Chemed Corporation provides hospice and palliative care services to patients through a network of physicians, registered nurses, home health aides, social workers, clergy, and volunteers primarily in the United States. The company operates in VITAS and Roto-Rooter segments. It offers plumbing, drain cleaning, excavation, water restoration, and other related services to residential and commercial customers through company-owned branches, independent contractors, and franchisees.