Verition Fund Management LLC Decreases Holdings in Chemed Co. (NYSE:CHE)

Verition Fund Management LLC lowered its position in Chemed Co. (NYSE:CHE) by 16.8% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 976 shares of the company’s stock after selling 197 shares during the period. Verition Fund Management LLC’s holdings in Chemed were worth $587,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Chemed by 2.6% in the second quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC now owns 580,316 shares of the company’s stock valued at $314,868,000 after purchasing an additional 14,651 shares during the last quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC grew its stake in Chemed by 2.7% in the 2nd quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 475,372 shares of the company’s stock valued at $257,927,000 after acquiring an additional 12,705 shares during the last quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc increased its holdings in Chemed by 4.7% during the 3rd quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc now owns 332,757 shares of the company’s stock valued at $199,977,000 after acquiring an additional 14,814 shares in the last quarter. TD Asset Management Inc raised its position in Chemed by 10.9% during the second quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 282,753 shares of the company’s stock worth $153,416,000 after acquiring an additional 27,800 shares during the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Chemed by 23.8% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 238,616 shares of the company’s stock valued at $143,401,000 after purchasing an additional 45,917 shares in the last quarter. 95.85% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Chemed Trading Down 0.3 %

NYSE:CHE opened at $546.24 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $8.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 0.46. Chemed Co. has a 12-month low of $523.33 and a 12-month high of $654.62. The company’s 50-day moving average is $572.96 and its two-hundred day moving average is $564.91.

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

Chemed Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 6th. Investors of record on Monday, November 18th were paid a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 18th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.37%. Chemed’s payout ratio is currently 10.11%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director George J. Walsh III sold 400 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $597.47, for a total transaction of $238,988.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 3,046 shares in the company, valued at $1,819,893.62. This represents a 11.61 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Kevin J. Mcnamara sold 2,000 shares of Chemed stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $598.81, for a total value of $1,197,620.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 103,735 shares in the company, valued at $62,117,555.35. The trade was a 1.89 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 5,132 shares of company stock worth $3,003,502. 3.32% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on CHE shares. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price objective on shares of Chemed from $697.00 to $633.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. StockNews.com raised Chemed from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, November 30th.

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.