Chemed (NYSE:CHE) Price Target Cut to $650.00 by Analysts at Bank of America

Chemed (NYSE:CHE) had its price objective reduced by Bank of America from $708.00 to $650.00 in a report released on Monday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a buy rating on the stock.

Several other brokerages have also recently issued reports on CHE. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their target price on shares of Chemed from $667.00 to $674.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, April 28th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Chemed from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, March 7th.

Chemed Trading Down 2.6%

Chemed stock opened at $471.57 on Monday. Chemed has a 12 month low of $471.24 and a 12 month high of $623.61. The company has a market capitalization of $6.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.33 and a beta of 0.50. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $558.69 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $563.40.

Chemed (NYSE:CHE) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The company reported $5.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.59 by $0.04. Chemed had a return on equity of 27.58% and a net margin of 12.40%. The firm had revenue of $646.94 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $641.78 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $5.20 EPS. Chemed’s quarterly revenue was up 9.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that Chemed will post 21.43 EPS for the current year.

Chemed Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 17th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 29th were given a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 29th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.42%. Chemed’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 9.74%.

Insider Transactions at Chemed

In other Chemed news, EVP Spencer S. Lee sold 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $577.99, for a total transaction of $866,985.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 14,627 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,454,259.73. This represents a 9.30% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Kevin J. Mcnamara sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $576.45, for a total transaction of $864,675.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 101,197 shares in the company, valued at approximately $58,335,010.65. The trade was a 1.46% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 4,500 shares of company stock valued at $2,598,450. 3.29% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Chemed

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CHE. Whipplewood Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Chemed by 54.5% during the 1st quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 51 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 18 shares in the last quarter. Renasant Bank raised its holdings in Chemed by 2.3% during the first quarter. Renasant Bank now owns 815 shares of the company’s stock valued at $501,000 after acquiring an additional 18 shares during the period. Impact Capital Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Chemed by 2.7% in the first quarter. Impact Capital Partners LLC now owns 763 shares of the company’s stock valued at $469,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Cim LLC lifted its position in shares of Chemed by 1.0% in the first quarter. Cim LLC now owns 2,029 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,248,000 after acquiring an additional 21 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC boosted its stake in shares of Chemed by 64.7% in the fourth quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 56 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 22 shares during the period. 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.