Insider Selling: Chemed Co. (NYSE:CHE) EVP Sells 732 Shares of Stock

Chemed Co. (NYSE:CHE) EVP Spencer S. Lee sold 732 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $575.62, for a total transaction of $421,353.84. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 18,287 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,526,362.94. The trade was a 3.85 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink.

Chemed Stock Up 0.3 %

NYSE CHE opened at $573.11 on Friday. Chemed Co. has a 52 week low of $523.33 and a 52 week high of $654.62. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $578.27 and a 200 day moving average price of $565.09. The firm has a market cap of $8.63 billion, a PE ratio of 28.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.42 and a beta of 0.46.

Chemed (NYSE:CHE) last issued its quarterly 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). Chemed had a return on equity of 27.86% and a net margin of 12.69%. The business had revenue of $606.18 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $612.22 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $5.32 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Chemed Co. will post 21.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Chemed Announces Dividend

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Chemed

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of CHE. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its stake in Chemed by 105.7% in the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 63,733 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,913,000 after purchasing an additional 32,752 shares in the last quarter. Cetera Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Chemed in the first quarter worth $267,000. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale lifted its stake in shares of Chemed by 34.5% during the first quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 154,579 shares of the company’s stock worth $98,516,000 after buying an additional 39,633 shares during the period. Park Place Capital Corp grew its holdings in shares of Chemed by 170.0% during the second quarter. Park Place Capital Corp now owns 1,080 shares of the company’s stock valued at $586,000 after buying an additional 680 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in shares of Chemed by 34.4% in the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 86 shares of the company’s stock valued at $47,000 after acquiring an additional 22 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.