Chemed Corporation (NYSE:CHE) Shares Sold by KBC Group NV

KBC Group NV reduced its stake in Chemed Corporation (NYSE:CHE - Free Report) by 89.2% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 626 shares of the company's stock after selling 5,183 shares during the period. KBC Group NV's holdings in Chemed were worth $385,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. Whipplewood Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Chemed by 54.5% in the first quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 51 shares of the company's stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 18 shares in the last quarter. Impact Capital Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Chemed by 2.7% in the first quarter. Impact Capital Partners LLC now owns 763 shares of the company's stock valued at $469,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC raised its stake in shares of Chemed by 64.7% in the fourth quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 56 shares of the company's stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 22 shares in the last quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Chemed by 13.5% in the fourth quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 185 shares of the company's stock valued at $98,000 after acquiring an additional 22 shares in the last quarter. Finally, KFG Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Chemed by 4.6% in the first quarter. KFG Wealth Management LLC now owns 525 shares of the company's stock valued at $323,000 after acquiring an additional 23 shares in the last quarter. 95.85% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other Chemed news, CEO Kevin J. Mcnamara sold 1,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $576.45, for a total transaction of $864,675.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 101,197 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $58,335,010.65. This trade represents a 1.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Spencer S. Lee sold 1,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $577.99, for a total value of $866,985.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 14,627 shares in the company, 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. Corporate insiders own 3.29% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $640.00 price objective (down from $674.00) on shares of Chemed in a research note on Monday, June 30th. Bank of America cut their price target on Chemed from $708.00 to $650.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, June 30th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut Chemed from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday.

Chemed Price Performance

Chemed stock opened at $472.61 on Friday. Chemed Corporation has a 1-year low of $469.80 and a 1-year high of $623.61. The stock has a market cap of $6.91 billion, a PE ratio of 23.02, a P/E/G ratio of 2.28 and a beta of 0.50. The stock's fifty day moving average is $555.54 and its two-hundred day moving average is $562.58.

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

Chemed Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 17th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 29th were issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.42%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 29th. Chemed's payout ratio is 9.74%.

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.

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