Deutsche Bank AG Reduces Stake in Chemed Co. (NYSE:CHE)

Deutsche Bank AG cut its holdings in shares of Chemed Co. (NYSE:CHE) by 93.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 2,203 shares of the company’s stock after selling 32,938 shares during the period. Deutsche Bank AG’s holdings in Chemed were worth $1,167,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. BOKF NA increased its stake in shares of Chemed by 52.4% in the 4th quarter. BOKF NA now owns 2,536 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,323,000 after acquiring an additional 872 shares in the last quarter. Citadel Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Chemed by 197.4% in the fourth quarter. Citadel Advisors LLC now owns 77,143 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,870,000 after purchasing an additional 51,206 shares during the period. Baird Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in Chemed by 6.1% in the fourth quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,352 shares of the company’s stock worth $716,000 after purchasing an additional 78 shares during the period. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. bought a new position in shares of Chemed during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $8,976,000. Finally, BLI Banque de Luxembourg Investments purchased a new position in shares of Chemed during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $14,783,000. Institutional investors own 95.85% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have weighed in on the stock. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Chemed from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on shares of Chemed from $667.00 to $674.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, April 28th.

Chemed Trading Up 1.3%

Chemed stock opened at $568.98 on Monday. Chemed Co. has a 12 month low of $512.12 and a 12 month high of $623.61. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $583.60 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $565.52. The firm has a market cap of $8.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.75, a PEG ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 0.59.

Chemed (NYSE:CHE) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 23rd. The company reported $5.63 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.59 by $0.04. Chemed had a return on equity of 27.86% and a net margin of 12.69%. The company had revenue of $646.94 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $641.78 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted $5.20 earnings per share. Chemed’s revenue was up 9.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast 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 will be paid on Tuesday, June 17th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 29th will be issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 29th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.35%. Chemed’s payout ratio is 9.74%.

Insider Activity at Chemed

In related news, EVP Spencer S. Lee sold 1,500 shares of Chemed stock in a transaction on Friday, May 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $577.99, for a total value of $866,985.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 14,627 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,454,259.73. The trade was a 9.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Kevin J. Mcnamara sold 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $615.33, for a total value of $615,330.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 101,679 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $62,566,139.07. This trade represents a 0.97% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 7,500 shares of company stock worth $4,401,120 over the last quarter. 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.