Alps Advisors Inc. Boosts Holdings in Chemed Corporation (NYSE:CHE)

Alps Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Chemed Corporation (NYSE:CHE - Free Report) by 7.0% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 33,843 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 2,213 shares during the period. Alps Advisors Inc. owned about 0.23% of Chemed worth $20,824,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in Chemed in the fourth quarter worth about $42,023,000. Bessemer Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Chemed by 14.2% during the 1st quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 950 shares of the company's stock valued at $585,000 after buying an additional 118 shares in the last quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC bought a new position in shares of Chemed during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $265,000. Park Place Capital Corp increased its holdings in Chemed by 71.2% in the 1st quarter. Park Place Capital Corp now owns 3,572 shares of the company's stock worth $2,198,000 after acquiring an additional 1,486 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mather Group LLC. raised its stake in Chemed by 53.3% during the 1st quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 161 shares of the company's stock worth $99,000 after acquiring an additional 56 shares during the period. 95.85% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have weighed in on CHE. Bank of America dropped their price target on shares of Chemed from $708.00 to $650.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, June 30th. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $640.00 price target (down previously from $674.00) on shares of Chemed in a research note on Monday, June 30th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut Chemed from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, July 5th.

Chemed Stock Down 1.3%

CHE stock traded down $5.99 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $459.69. The company's stock had a trading volume of 95,700 shares, compared to its average volume of 112,311. Chemed Corporation has a 12 month low of $457.44 and a 12 month high of $623.61. The company has a 50 day moving average of $544.66 and a two-hundred day moving average of $560.68. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 0.50.

Chemed (NYSE:CHE - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The company reported $5.63 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.59 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $646.94 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $641.78 million. Chemed had a return on equity of 27.58% and a net margin of 12.40%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 9.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $5.20 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Chemed Corporation will post 21.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Chemed Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 17th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 29th were paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.44%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 29th. Chemed's payout ratio is 9.74%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Chemed news, CEO Kevin J. Mcnamara sold 1,500 shares of Chemed stock in a transaction on Monday, May 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $576.45, for a total value of $864,675.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 101,197 shares of the company's stock, valued at $58,335,010.65. This trade represents a 1.46% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Spencer S. Lee sold 1,500 shares of the 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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 14,627 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,454,259.73. The trade was a 9.30% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 4,500 shares of company stock worth $2,598,450. 3.29% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.