Second Half Financial Partners LLC Buys Shares of 903 Chemed Co. (NYSE:CHE)

Second Half Financial Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Chemed Co. (NYSE:CHE - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 903 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $478,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Neuberger Berman Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Chemed by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Neuberger Berman Group LLC now owns 501,562 shares of the company's stock valued at $265,726,000 after purchasing an additional 5,809 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Chemed by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 340,409 shares of the company's stock valued at $180,654,000 after acquiring an additional 4,966 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC increased its position in shares of Chemed by 18.9% in the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 283,790 shares of the company's stock valued at $150,352,000 after acquiring an additional 45,174 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its holdings in Chemed by 8.2% during the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 266,786 shares of the company's stock worth $141,343,000 after acquiring an additional 20,310 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Epoch Investment Partners Inc. increased its holdings in Chemed by 5.1% during the fourth quarter. Epoch Investment Partners Inc. now owns 252,237 shares of the company's stock worth $133,635,000 after buying an additional 12,167 shares during the last quarter. 95.85% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently commented on CHE shares. StockNews.com raised shares of Chemed from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on Chemed from $667.00 to $674.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday.

Chemed Price Performance

NYSE CHE traded down $8.36 on Thursday, reaching $573.15. The stock had a trading volume of 113,752 shares, compared to its average volume of 99,359. The company has a market cap of $8.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 0.49. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $589.04 and a two-hundred day moving average of $566.71. Chemed Co. has a 1-year low of $512.12 and a 1-year high of $623.61.

Chemed (NYSE:CHE - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The company reported $5.63 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $5.59 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $646.94 million for 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 for the quarter was up 9.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $5.20 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that Chemed Co. will post 21.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Chemed Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 24th were issued a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 24th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.35%. Chemed's dividend payout ratio is presently 9.74%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Kevin J. Mcnamara sold 1,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $615.33, for a total value of $615,330.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 101,679 shares of the company's stock, valued at $62,566,139.07. The trade was a 0.97 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 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.