United Services Automobile Association Acquires Shares of 993 Chemed Corporation $CHE

Key Points

• United Services Automobile Association acquired a new stake in Chemed Corporation during the first quarter, buying 993 shares valued at approximately $601,000.
• Chemed recently declared an increased quarterly dividend of $0.60 per share, up from the previous $0.50, reflecting a 0.5% dividend yield.
• Despite a growth in year-over-year revenue, Chemed reported an EPS of $4.27 for the last quarter, falling short of analysts' estimates by $1.75.

United Services Automobile Association bought a new position in Chemed Corporation (NYSE:CHE - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm bought 993 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $601,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in Chemed by 2.6% in the 1st quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC now owns 597,175 shares of the company's stock worth $367,454,000 after purchasing an additional 15,041 shares in the last quarter. Neuberger Berman Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of Chemed by 3.9% during the 1st quarter. Neuberger Berman Group LLC now owns 521,212 shares of the company's stock worth $320,712,000 after buying an additional 19,650 shares during the last quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp increased its holdings in shares of Chemed by 1.7% during the 1st quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp now owns 246,351 shares of the company's stock worth $151,585,000 after buying an additional 4,179 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in shares of Chemed by 9.7% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 218,675 shares of the company's stock worth $134,547,000 after buying an additional 19,421 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp increased its holdings in shares of 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 buying an additional 6,988 shares during the last quarter. 95.85% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Chemed

In related news, Director Patrick P. Grace sold 150 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $463.39, for a total value of $69,508.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 3,397 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,574,135.83. The trade was a 4.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director George J. Walsh III purchased 200 shares of Chemed stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 4th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $417.10 per share, with a total value of $83,420.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 3,523 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,469,443.30. The trade was a 6.02% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 3.29% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CHE has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Oppenheimer cut their price target on shares of Chemed from $650.00 to $580.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Chemed from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their target price for the company from $490.00 to $550.00 in a report on Tuesday, September 2nd. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Chemed from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, July 5th. Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their target price on shares of Chemed from $640.00 to $589.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Finally, Bank of America dropped their target price on shares of Chemed from $610.00 to $595.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, Chemed presently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $578.50.

Chemed Stock Down 2.6%

CHE stock traded down $11.89 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $446.00. The company's stock had a trading volume of 160,245 shares, compared to its average volume of 167,896. Chemed Corporation has a 52-week low of $408.42 and a 52-week high of $623.60. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.93, a PEG ratio of 2.66 and a beta of 0.46. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $451.83 and a 200-day simple moving average of $531.04.

Chemed (NYSE:CHE - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $4.27 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $6.02 by ($1.75). Chemed had a net margin of 11.56% and a return on equity of 25.83%. The business had revenue of $618.80 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $650.60 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $5.47 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 3.8% on a year-over-year basis. Chemed has set its FY 2025 guidance at 22.000-22.300 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Chemed Corporation will post 21.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Chemed Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 29th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 11th were given a dividend of $0.60 per share. This is an increase from Chemed's previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 11th. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. Chemed's dividend payout ratio is presently 12.34%.

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.