Chemed Corporation (NYSE:CHE) Given Average Recommendation of "Hold" by Brokerages

Key Points

• Analyst consensus is “Hold”: Five of six brokerages rate Chemed neutral, while one recommends buying. The average 12-month price target is $530.75.
• Quarterly results exceeded expectations: Chemed reported adjusted EPS of $6.06 versus the $5.60 consensus estimate, while revenue rose 8.8% year over year to $673.25 million.
• Chemed raised its quarterly dividend to $0.70 per share from $0.60, representing an annualized dividend of $2.80 and a 0.6% yield. Insiders have sold 5,190 shares worth approximately $2.8 million over the past 90 days.

Shares of Chemed Corporation (NYSE:CHE - Get Free Report) have earned a consensus recommendation of "Hold" from the six research firms that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and one has assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price target among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $530.75.

A number of analysts have recently commented on the stock. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Chemed from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 1st. Bank of America reaffirmed a "neutral" rating on shares of Chemed in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Oppenheimer lifted their price objective on Chemed from $500.00 to $590.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, July 31st. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price objective on Chemed from $436.00 to $548.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised Chemed from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a report on Friday, July 17th.

Chemed Stock Down 0.9%

Chemed stock opened at $505.43 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a current ratio of 0.91 and a quick ratio of 0.89. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.61 billion, a PE ratio of 25.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.05 and a beta of 0.51. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $522.71 and a 200-day simple moving average of $455.27. Chemed has a 12 month low of $365.20 and a 12 month high of $557.00.

Chemed (NYSE:CHE - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The company reported $6.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $5.60 by $0.46. The firm had revenue of $673.25 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $665.04 million. Chemed had a net margin of 10.60% and a return on equity of 31.77%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 8.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $4.27 EPS. Chemed has set its FY 2026 guidance at 25.000-25.750 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Chemed will post 23.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Chemed Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 3rd. Investors of record on Monday, August 17th were given a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 17th. This is a positive change from Chemed's previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.6%. Chemed's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 14.06%.

Insider Activity at Chemed

In other Chemed news, CEO Kevin J. Mcnamara sold 2,000 shares of Chemed stock in a transaction on Monday, August 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $539.51, for a total transaction of $1,079,020.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 70,418 shares of the company's stock, valued at $37,991,215.18. The trade was a 2.76% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Patrick P. Grace sold 190 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, July 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $532.00, for a total transaction of $101,080.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 3,533 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,879,556. The trade was a 5.10% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 5,190 shares of company stock valued at $2,803,460. 3.33% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Chemed

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Monetary Solutions Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Chemed during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. BOK Financial Private Wealth Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Chemed in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Chemed in the second quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its holdings in shares of Chemed by 7,500.0% in the second quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 76 shares of the company's stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Keating Financial Advisory Services Inc. purchased a new position in Chemed during the second quarter worth approximately $36,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.85% of the company's stock.

Chemed Company Profile

Chemed Corporation is a diversified holding company that operates businesses in the healthcare and residential and commercial services industries. Its primary operations are conducted through VITAS Healthcare and Roto-Rooter.

VITAS Healthcare provides hospice and palliative care for patients with advanced illnesses. Its services are delivered in patients' homes, hospice residences, nursing facilities, hospitals and other care settings, primarily throughout the United States. Care is provided by interdisciplinary teams that may include physicians, nurses, hospice aides, social workers and chaplains.

Roto-Rooter provides plumbing and drain-cleaning services, as well as water cleanup and related services for residential and commercial customers.

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