SG Americas Securities LLC Makes New Investment in Chemed Co. (NYSE:CHE)

SG Americas Securities LLC bought a new position in shares of Chemed Co. (NYSE:CHE - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 2,032 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,250,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in Chemed by 113.4% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 271 shares of the company's stock worth $167,000 after purchasing an additional 144 shares during the period. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. boosted its position in Chemed by 4.4% during the first quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 3,328 shares of the company's stock worth $2,048,000 after purchasing an additional 140 shares during the period. Farther Finance Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Chemed by 23.0% in the first quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 150 shares of the company's stock valued at $93,000 after acquiring an additional 28 shares during the period. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its position in shares of Chemed by 219.2% in the first quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 166 shares of the company's stock valued at $102,000 after acquiring an additional 114 shares during the period. Finally, KFG Wealth Management LLC boosted its position 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 during the period. Institutional investors own 95.85% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CHE has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Chemed from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on shares of Chemed from $667.00 to $674.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, April 28th.

Insider Activity at Chemed

In other Chemed news, EVP Spencer S. Lee sold 1,500 shares of Chemed stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $577.99, for a total transaction of $866,985.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 14,627 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,454,259.73. This trade represents a 9.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Kevin J. Mcnamara sold 1,000 shares of Chemed stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $615.33, for a total transaction of $615,330.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 101,679 shares in the company, valued at $62,566,139.07. This trade represents a 0.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 5,500 shares of company stock valued at $3,213,780 over the last three months. 3.29% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Chemed Trading Up 0.3%

CHE stock opened at $552.57 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $571.05 and a 200-day moving average of $565.33. Chemed Co. has a 12 month low of $512.12 and a 12 month high of $623.61. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 0.54.

Chemed (NYSE:CHE - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 23rd. The company reported $5.63 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $5.59 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $646.94 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $641.78 million. Chemed had a net margin of 12.69% and a return on equity of 27.86%. Chemed's revenue was up 9.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $5.20 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Chemed Co. will post 21.43 EPS for the current year.

Chemed Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 17th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 29th will be paid a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.36%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 29th. Chemed's dividend payout ratio is currently 9.74%.

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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