StockNews.com Initiates Coverage on Chemed (NYSE:CHE)

Analysts at StockNews.com started coverage on shares of Chemed (NYSE:CHE – Get Rating) in a research note issued on Thursday. The firm set a “buy” rating on the stock.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports on CHE. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of Chemed from $587.00 to $610.00 in a research report on Monday, May 1st. Oppenheimer boosted their price objective on shares of Chemed from $580.00 to $610.00 in a research report on Friday, April 28th.

Chemed Price Performance

CHE stock opened at $540.42 on Thursday. Chemed has a 12 month low of $430.16 and a 12 month high of $570.17. The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $541.45 and a 200 day moving average price of $518.33. The stock has a market cap of $8.12 billion, a PE ratio of 34.01, a P/E/G ratio of 3.02 and a beta of 0.54.

Chemed (NYSE:CHE – Get Rating) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, February 24th. The company reported $5.39 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.30 by $0.09. Chemed had a net margin of 11.07% and a return on equity of 37.83%. The firm had revenue of $546.65 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $546.60 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $5.25 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that Chemed will post 20.57 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Chemed

In other news, CFO David Patrick Williams sold 4,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $523.25, for a total value of $2,093,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 20,443 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,696,799.75. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, CEO Kevin J. Mcnamara sold 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $507.32, for a total transaction of $1,014,640.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 121,613 shares in the company, valued at approximately $61,696,707.16. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO David Patrick Williams sold 4,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $523.25, for a total transaction of $2,093,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 20,443 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,696,799.75. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 13,000 shares of company stock valued at $6,883,810. Company insiders own 3.80% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of CHE. Rice Hall James & Associates LLC bought a new position in shares of Chemed during the 1st quarter worth approximately $273,000. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. raised its stake in shares of Chemed by 13.3% during the 1st quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 1,957 shares of the company’s stock worth $992,000 after acquiring an additional 230 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. raised its stake in shares of Chemed by 7.2% during the 1st quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 2,018 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,022,000 after acquiring an additional 135 shares in the last quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC increased its stake in Chemed by 6.2% during the 1st quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 836 shares of the company’s stock valued at $432,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Panagora Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in Chemed by 495.0% during the 1st quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,261 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,145,000 after purchasing an additional 1,881 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 91.12% of the company’s stock.

Chemed Company Profile

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Chemed Corp. engages in the provision of healthcare and maintenance services. It operates through the VITAS and Roto-Rooter segments. The VITAS segment offers hospice and palliative care services to patients through a network of physicians, registered nurses, home health aides, social workers, clergy, and volunteers.