Chemed (NYSE:CHE) Cut to Hold at StockNews.com

StockNews.com downgraded shares of Chemed (NYSE:CHE) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note published on Friday.

Separately, Royal Bank of Canada decreased their target price on shares of Chemed from $697.00 to $633.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th.

Chemed Trading Up 1.4 %

Shares of NYSE CHE opened at $570.96 on Friday. Chemed has a 12-month low of $523.33 and a 12-month high of $654.62. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $579.08 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $565.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.59 billion, a PE ratio of 28.85, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 0.46.

Chemed (NYSE:CHE) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The company reported $5.64 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.76 by ($0.12). The company had revenue of $606.18 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $612.22 million. Chemed had a net margin of 12.69% and a return on equity of 27.86%. Chemed’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $5.32 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Chemed will post 21.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Chemed Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 6th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 18th will be paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 18th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.35%. Chemed’s payout ratio is presently 10.11%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Nicholas Michael Westfall sold 1,713 shares of the 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 sale, the executive vice president now owns 6,109 shares in the company, valued at $3,478,159.15. This represents a 21.90 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Kevin J. Mcnamara sold 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $598.81, for a total transaction of $1,197,620.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 103,735 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $62,117,555.35. This represents a 1.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 4,113 shares of company stock valued at $2,411,905. Company insiders own 3.32% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Chemed

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of CHE. SG Americas Securities LLC grew its holdings in Chemed by 422.9% during the second quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 7,551 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,097,000 after acquiring an additional 6,107 shares during the period. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. boosted its position in Chemed by 292.7% in the 2nd quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 1,241 shares of the company’s stock worth $673,000 after purchasing an additional 925 shares in the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC grew its stake in shares of Chemed by 110.0% during the 2nd quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 10,638 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,801,000 after purchasing an additional 5,572 shares during the period. Evergreen Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Chemed during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $7,812,000. Finally, Quest Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Chemed by 634.3% in the 2nd quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 1,990 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,080,000 after purchasing an additional 1,719 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.85% of the company’s stock.

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.