GAMMA Investing LLC Raises Holdings in Chemed Co. (NYSE:CHE)

GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Chemed Co. (NYSE:CHE) by 131,200.8% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 166,752 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 166,625 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC’s holdings in Chemed were worth $102,606,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of CHE. Capital Insight Partners LLC increased its stake in Chemed by 5.3% in the 4th quarter. Capital Insight Partners LLC now owns 10,633 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,633,000 after purchasing an additional 539 shares in the last quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in Chemed in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $8,138,000. Copeland Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Chemed by 16.8% in the 4th quarter. Copeland Capital Management LLC now owns 151,623 shares of the company’s stock valued at $80,330,000 after purchasing an additional 21,834 shares in the last quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp increased its stake in Chemed by 10.0% in the 4th quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp now owns 242,172 shares of the company’s stock valued at $128,303,000 after purchasing an additional 22,105 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jericho Financial LLP purchased a new position in Chemed in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $3,142,000. 95.85% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Kevin J. Mcnamara sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $615.33, for a total transaction of $615,330.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 101,679 shares in the company, valued at $62,566,139.07. This trade represents a 0.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Spencer S. Lee sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $577.99, for a total value of $866,985.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 14,627 shares in the company, valued at $8,454,259.73. This trade represents a 9.30% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 7,500 shares of company stock valued at $4,401,120. Corporate insiders own 3.29% of the company’s stock.

Chemed Price Performance

NYSE CHE opened at $574.62 on Monday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $580.66 and a 200 day moving average price of $565.90. The company has a market capitalization of $8.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.04, a PEG ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 0.59. Chemed Co. has a 1-year low of $512.12 and a 1-year high of $623.61.

Chemed (NYSE:CHE) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The company reported $5.63 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.59 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $646.94 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $641.78 million. Chemed had a return on equity of 27.86% and a net margin of 12.69%. Chemed’s revenue was up 9.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $5.20 earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect that Chemed Co. will post 21.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Chemed Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 17th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 29th will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.35%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 29th. Chemed’s payout ratio is 9.74%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on CHE shares. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on Chemed from $667.00 to $674.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Wall Street Zen raised Chemed from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th.

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.