Chemed (NYSE:CHE) Rating Lowered to Hold at StockNews.com

Chemed (NYSE:CHE) was downgraded by analysts at StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note issued to investors on Friday.

Separately, Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price target on shares of Chemed from $697.00 to $633.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th.

Chemed Stock Up 1.3 %

Shares of Chemed stock traded up $7.35 during trading on Friday, hitting $570.63. 113,335 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 86,127. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $579.16 and a 200 day moving average price of $565.16. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.83, a P/E/G ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 0.46. Chemed has a fifty-two week low of $523.33 and a fifty-two week high of $654.62.

Chemed (NYSE:CHE) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The company reported $5.64 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.76 by ($0.12). The company had revenue of $606.18 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $612.22 million. Chemed had a return on equity of 27.86% and a net margin of 12.69%. The business’s revenue was up 7.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $5.32 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Chemed will post 22.26 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other Chemed news, CEO Kevin J. Mcnamara sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $598.81, for a total transaction of $1,197,620.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 103,735 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $62,117,555.35. This trade represents a 1.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director George J. Walsh III sold 400 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $597.47, for a total transaction of $238,988.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 3,046 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,819,893.62. This represents a 11.61 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 4,113 shares of company stock valued at $2,411,905 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 3.32% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans raised its holdings in Chemed by 300.3% in the second quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 116,572 shares of the company’s stock valued at $63,249,000 after buying an additional 87,449 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Chemed in the 3rd quarter valued at $437,150,000. Impax Asset Management Group plc lifted its holdings in shares of Chemed by 19.5% during the 2nd quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc now owns 317,943 shares of the company’s stock valued at $172,510,000 after acquiring an additional 51,974 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC boosted its position in Chemed by 23.8% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 238,616 shares of the company’s stock worth $143,401,000 after purchasing an additional 45,917 shares during the period. Finally, Epoch Investment Partners Inc. increased its holdings in Chemed by 22.1% in the 2nd quarter. Epoch Investment Partners Inc. now owns 223,134 shares of the company’s stock valued at $121,068,000 after purchasing an additional 40,358 shares in the last quarter. 95.85% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.