Chemed (NYSE:CHE) Upgraded by StockNews.com to “Buy”

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Chemed (NYSE:CHE) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report published on Saturday.

Several other brokerages have also recently issued reports on CHE. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on shares of Chemed from $604.00 to $712.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a research report on Monday, March 4th. Oppenheimer upped their target price on Chemed from $625.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a report on Thursday, February 29th.

Chemed Stock Performance

Shares of CHE stock opened at $571.05 on Friday. Chemed has a fifty-two week low of $492.84 and a fifty-two week high of $654.62. The firm has a market cap of $8.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.73, a P/E/G ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 0.46. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $620.11 and its 200-day moving average price is $594.07.

Chemed (NYSE:CHE) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The company reported $4.68 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.09 by ($0.41). The business had revenue of $589.23 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $587.18 million. Chemed had a return on equity of 30.52% and a net margin of 12.36%. As a group, equities analysts predict that Chemed will post 21.72 EPS for the current year.

Chemed Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 26th were given a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.28%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 23rd. Chemed’s dividend payout ratio is presently 8.61%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Chemed news, VP Brian C. Judkins sold 11,158 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $645.00, for a total value of $7,196,910.00. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 1,422 shares in the company, valued at $917,190. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other Chemed news, VP Brian C. Judkins sold 11,158 shares of Chemed stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $645.00, for a total transaction of $7,196,910.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 1,422 shares in the company, valued at $917,190. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Michael D. Witzeman sold 2,650 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $643.14, for a total value of $1,704,321.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 2,882 shares in the company, valued at $1,853,529.48. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 15,808 shares of company stock worth $10,184,531 in the last three months. 3.32% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Chemed

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Rise Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Chemed in the first quarter worth approximately $26,000. GAMMA Investing LLC purchased a new position in Chemed in the 4th quarter worth approximately $37,000. Larson Financial Group LLC bought a new position in Chemed in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $44,000. Principal Securities Inc. purchased a new stake in Chemed during the 4th quarter valued at $51,000. Finally, SRS Capital Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Chemed by 110.6% in the 4th quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 99 shares of the company’s stock worth $58,000 after purchasing an additional 52 shares in the last quarter. 95.85% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.