Chemed Co. (NYSE:CHE) Shares Sold by Wealth Alliance

Wealth Alliance lowered its position in Chemed Co. (NYSE:CHE) by 4.4% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 559 shares of the company’s stock after selling 26 shares during the quarter. Wealth Alliance’s holdings in Chemed were worth $296,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of CHE. International Assets Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Chemed in the third quarter worth about $437,150,000. FMR LLC raised its position in shares of Chemed by 23.8% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 238,616 shares of the company’s stock worth $143,401,000 after acquiring an additional 45,917 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Chemed by 114.1% in the fourth quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 74,658 shares of the company’s stock worth $39,554,000 after acquiring an additional 39,791 shares during the period. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans raised its position in shares of Chemed by 25.3% in the third quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 146,017 shares of the company’s stock worth $87,752,000 after acquiring an additional 29,445 shares during the period. Finally, Aureus Asset Management LLC raised its position in shares of Chemed by 3,147.2% in the third quarter. Aureus Asset Management LLC now owns 29,939 shares of the company’s stock worth $17,993,000 after acquiring an additional 29,017 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.85% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Chemed

In other Chemed news, VP Brian C. Judkins acquired 145 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 30th. The stock was bought at an average price of $519.50 per share, with a total value of $75,327.50. Following the purchase, the vice president now owns 1,678 shares in the company, valued at approximately $871,721. The trade was a 9.46 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Kevin J. Mcnamara sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $572.77, for a total transaction of $1,145,540.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 101,735 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $58,270,755.95. This represents a 1.93 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 3.32% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have weighed in on CHE. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price objective on shares of Chemed from $697.00 to $633.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. StockNews.com raised shares of Chemed from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, November 30th.

Chemed Stock Down 1.0 %

CHE stock opened at $544.75 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.53, a P/E/G ratio of 2.17 and a beta of 0.48. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $542.60 and a 200-day simple moving average of $563.80. Chemed Co. has a 52 week low of $512.12 and a 52 week high of $654.62.

Chemed Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Monday, February 24th will be paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 24th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.37%. Chemed’s dividend payout ratio is presently 10.11%.

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.