Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC Raises Holdings in Chemed Corporation $CHE

Key Points

• Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its stake in Chemed Corporation by 59.7% during the second quarter, now owning 2,389 shares valued at approximately $1,130,000.
• Bank of America reduced its price target for Chemed shares from $610.00 to $595.00, while Jefferies Financial Group upgraded its rating and raised its price target from $490.00 to $550.00.
• Chemed announced a quarterly dividend increase to $0.60 per share, up from $0.50, representing an annualized yield of 0.5% with a payout ratio of 12.34%.

Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its position in shares of Chemed Corporation (NYSE:CHE - Free Report) by 59.7% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 2,389 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 893 shares during the quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC's holdings in Chemed were worth $1,130,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Chemed by 2.6% during the first quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC now owns 597,175 shares of the company's stock worth $367,454,000 after buying an additional 15,041 shares during the period. Neuberger Berman Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of Chemed by 3.9% during the first 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 period. Boston Trust Walden Corp boosted its stake in shares of Chemed by 1.7% during the first 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 period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its stake in shares of Chemed by 9.7% during the first 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 period. Finally, Northern Trust Corp boosted its stake in shares of Chemed by 3.4% during the first 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 period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.85% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CHE has been the subject of several recent research reports. Bank of America decreased their target price on shares of Chemed from $610.00 to $595.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, September 10th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Chemed from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their price objective for the company from $490.00 to $550.00 in a research report on Tuesday, September 2nd. 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. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Chemed from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, July 5th. 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. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $578.50.

Chemed Trading Down 1.7%

Shares of Chemed stock opened at $440.06 on Thursday. Chemed Corporation has a 12-month low of $408.42 and a 12-month high of $623.60. The stock has a market cap of $6.41 billion, a PE ratio of 22.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 0.43. The company has a 50-day moving average of $449.68 and a two-hundred day moving average of $518.69.

Chemed (NYSE:CHE - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results 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). Chemed had a net margin of 11.56% and a return on equity of 25.83%. The company had revenue of $618.80 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $650.60 million. During the same period last year, the business posted $5.47 earnings per share. The company'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 forecast that Chemed Corporation will post 21.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Chemed Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 29th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 11th were paid a dividend of $0.60 per share. This is a positive change 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.5%. Chemed's dividend payout ratio is 12.34%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Chemed

In other Chemed news, Director George J. Walsh III acquired 200 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 4th. The stock was 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 approximately $1,469,443.30. This trade represents a 6.02% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Kevin J. Mcnamara sold 3,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $461.28, for a total transaction of $1,383,840.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 96,197 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $44,373,752.16. This trade represents a 3.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 13,162 shares of company stock valued at $5,677,511. Company insiders own 3.29% of the company's stock.

Chemed 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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