Chemed Co. (NYSE:CHE) Shares Purchased by Retirement Systems of Alabama

Retirement Systems of Alabama grew its position in shares of Chemed Co. (NYSE:CHE) by 0.1% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 42,664 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 39 shares during the quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama’s holdings in Chemed were worth $24,948,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. GAMMA Investing LLC bought a new position in Chemed during the 4th quarter worth $37,000. Larson Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Chemed in the 3rd quarter worth about $44,000. Legacy Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in Chemed in the 3rd quarter valued at about $48,000. Covestor Ltd boosted its stake in Chemed by 27.4% during the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 144 shares of the company’s stock valued at $75,000 after purchasing an additional 31 shares during the period. Finally, ORG Partners LLC bought a new position in Chemed in the 3rd quarter worth about $126,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.85% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Chemed

In other news, EVP Spencer S. Lee sold 2,000 shares of Chemed stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $641.65, for a total transaction of $1,283,300.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 20,760 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,320,654. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, VP Brian C. Judkins sold 11,158 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the vice president now owns 1,422 shares in the company, valued at approximately $917,190. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Spencer S. Lee sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $641.65, for a total value of $1,283,300.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 20,760 shares in the company, valued at $13,320,654. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 15,808 shares of company stock worth $10,184,531 over the last 90 days. 3.32% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Chemed Price Performance

CHE stock opened at $566.51 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $8.57 billion, a PE ratio of 30.49, a P/E/G ratio of 2.28 and a beta of 0.42. Chemed Co. has a 12 month low of $492.84 and a 12 month high of $654.62. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $622.95 and a 200 day simple moving average of $592.30.

Chemed (NYSE:CHE) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 24th. The company reported $4.68 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $5.09 by ($0.41). The company had revenue of $589.23 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $587.18 million. Chemed had a return on equity of 30.52% and a net margin of 12.36%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Chemed Co. will post 21.79 earnings per share for the current year.

Chemed Dividend Announcement

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. StockNews.com lowered Chemed from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday. Oppenheimer increased their price target on Chemed from $625.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 29th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of Chemed from $604.00 to $712.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, March 4th.

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.