Chemed Corporation $CHE Shares Purchased by Aptus Capital Advisors LLC

Key Points

• Aptus Capital Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Chemed Corporation by 10.7% during the first quarter, owning approximately $27.7 million worth of shares.
• The company recently declared a quarterly dividend increase from $0.50 to $0.60 per share, representing a 0.5% dividend yield.
• Analysts have set diverse price targets for Chemed, with a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $579.75.

Aptus Capital Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Chemed Corporation (NYSE:CHE - Free Report) by 10.7% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 45,046 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 4,351 shares during the period. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC owned approximately 0.31% of Chemed worth $27,718,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Northern Trust Corp grew its holdings in Chemed by 3.4% during the 1st quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 215,523 shares of the company's stock worth $132,616,000 after acquiring an additional 6,988 shares in the last quarter. Cresset Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in Chemed by 7.4% during the 1st quarter. Cresset Asset Management LLC now owns 481 shares of the company's stock worth $296,000 after acquiring an additional 33 shares in the last quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D grew its holdings in Chemed by 5.0% during the 1st quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D now owns 4,745 shares of the company's stock worth $2,920,000 after acquiring an additional 226 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. grew its holdings in Chemed by 63.6% during the 1st quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 6,508 shares of the company's stock worth $4,005,000 after acquiring an additional 2,531 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Element Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Chemed during the 1st quarter worth approximately $2,752,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.85% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director George J. Walsh III purchased 200 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 4th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $417.10 per share, with a total value of $83,420.00. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 3,523 shares in the company, valued at $1,469,443.30. This trade represents a 6.02% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Nicholas Michael Westfall sold 10,012 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $421.91, for a total transaction of $4,224,162.92. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 3.29% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CHE has been the subject of several analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of Chemed in a report on Friday, July 25th. They set a "hold" rating and a $500.00 price target for the company. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Chemed from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, July 5th. Bank of America reduced their price objective 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 reduced their price objective on shares of Chemed from $640.00 to $589.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. Finally, Oppenheimer reduced their price objective on shares of Chemed from $650.00 to $580.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $579.75.

Chemed Price Performance

CHE stock opened at $445.00 on Monday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $482.43 and a 200 day moving average price of $544.31. Chemed Corporation has a 12 month low of $408.42 and a 12 month high of $623.60. The company has a market cap of $6.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 0.46.

Chemed (NYSE:CHE - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $4.27 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $6.02 by ($1.75). The firm had revenue of $618.80 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $650.60 million. Chemed had a return on equity of 25.83% and a net margin of 11.56%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 3.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $5.47 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Chemed Corporation will post 21.43 earnings per share for the current year.

Chemed Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 29th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 11th will be paid a dividend of $0.60 per share. This is a boost from Chemed's previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 11th. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.5%. Chemed's dividend payout ratio is currently 12.34%.

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.

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