VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al Takes $2.70 Million Position in Chemed Corporation $CHE

VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al bought a new stake in shares of Chemed Corporation (NYSE:CHE) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 5,536 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,696,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of CHE. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Chemed by 249.3% during the first quarter. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. now owns 130,037 shares of the company’s stock valued at $80,015,000 after buying an additional 92,813 shares during the last quarter. Woodline Partners LP grew its stake in shares of Chemed by 2,681.0% during the first quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 58,178 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,798,000 after buying an additional 56,086 shares during the last quarter. Nuveen LLC bought a new position in shares of Chemed during the first quarter valued at approximately $30,527,000. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Chemed during the first quarter valued at approximately $26,059,000. Finally, Candriam S.C.A. grew its stake in shares of Chemed by 207.7% during the first quarter. Candriam S.C.A. now owns 45,178 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,799,000 after buying an additional 30,495 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 95.85% of the company’s stock.

Chemed Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE CHE opened at $441.75 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.71, a PEG ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 0.43. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $449.11 and a 200 day moving average price of $501.36. Chemed Corporation has a 52-week low of $408.42 and a 52-week high of $623.60.

Chemed (NYSE:CHE) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $4.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.02 by ($1.75). The firm had revenue of $618.80 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $650.60 million. Chemed had a net margin of 11.56% and a return on equity of 25.83%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $5.47 EPS. Chemed has set its FY 2025 guidance at 22.000-22.300 EPS. Analysts forecast that Chemed Corporation will post 21.43 earnings per share for the current year.

Chemed Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 29th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 11th were issued a dividend of $0.60 per share. This is an increase from Chemed’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 11th. Chemed’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 12.34%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently commented on CHE shares. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Chemed in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Wall Street Zen lowered Chemed from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, July 5th. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their price target on Chemed from $640.00 to $589.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Oppenheimer lowered their price target on Chemed from $650.00 to $580.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Chemed from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $490.00 to $550.00 in a report on Tuesday, September 2nd. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $578.50.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director George J. Walsh III bought 200 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 4th. The stock was bought at an average price of $417.10 per share, for a total transaction of $83,420.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director directly owned 3,523 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,469,443.30. This represents a 6.02% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Nicholas Michael Westfall sold 10,012 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $421.91, for a total value of $4,224,162.92. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 13,162 shares of company stock worth $5,677,511 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 3.29% of the company’s stock.

Chemed Company Profile

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.