Element Capital Management LLC Acquires Shares of 4,473 Chemed Corporation $CHE

Key Points

• Element Capital Management LLC has acquired a new stake of 4,473 shares in Chemed Corporation, valued at approximately $2.75 million, indicating growing institutional interest in the company.
• Chemed Corporation's stock recently reported a 1.4% decline, opening at $444.23, while analysts forecast an earnings per share of 21.43 for the current fiscal year.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend increase to $0.60 per share from $0.50, with a yield of 0.5%, reflecting positive cash flow management.

Element Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Chemed Corporation (NYSE:CHE - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm purchased 4,473 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,752,000.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Neuberger Berman Group LLC increased its holdings in Chemed by 3.9% during the 1st quarter. Neuberger Berman Group LLC now owns 521,212 shares of the company's stock valued at $320,712,000 after acquiring an additional 19,650 shares in the last quarter. Epoch Investment Partners Inc. increased its holdings in Chemed by 5.1% during the 4th quarter. Epoch Investment Partners Inc. now owns 252,237 shares of the company's stock valued at $133,635,000 after acquiring an additional 12,167 shares in the last quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp increased its holdings in Chemed by 1.7% during the 1st quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp now owns 246,351 shares of the company's stock valued at $151,585,000 after acquiring an additional 4,179 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in Chemed by 9.7% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 218,675 shares of the company's stock valued at $134,547,000 after acquiring an additional 19,421 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp increased its holdings in Chemed by 19.3% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 208,535 shares of the company's stock valued at $110,482,000 after acquiring an additional 33,710 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.85% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have issued reports on CHE. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price target on shares of Chemed from $640.00 to $589.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of Chemed in a research note on Friday, July 25th. They set a "hold" rating and a $500.00 price target on the stock. Bank of America decreased their price target on shares of Chemed from $708.00 to $650.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, June 30th. Oppenheimer decreased their price target on shares of Chemed from $650.00 to $580.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of Chemed from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, July 5th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $579.75.

Chemed Price Performance

CHE stock traded up $9.60 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $454.43. 137,281 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 137,870. The company has a market capitalization of $6.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.36, a PEG ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 0.46. Chemed Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $408.42 and a fifty-two week high of $623.60. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $480.34 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $543.50.

Chemed (NYSE:CHE - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $4.27 earnings per share (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 net margin of 11.56% and a return on equity of 25.83%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 3.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $5.47 EPS. Chemed has set its FY 2025 guidance at 22.000-22.300 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Chemed Corporation will post 21.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Chemed Increases Dividend

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

Insider Activity

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

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.