Merit Financial Group LLC Purchases Shares of 417 Chemed Co. (NYSE:CHE)

Merit Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in Chemed Co. (NYSE:CHE) in the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm acquired 417 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $257,000.

Other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Atala Financial Inc acquired a new position in Chemed in the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC increased its holdings in Chemed by 64.7% in the 4th quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 56 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 22 shares during the period. Tortoise Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in Chemed by 77.3% in the 4th quarter. Tortoise Investment Management LLC now owns 78 shares of the company’s stock worth $41,000 after buying an additional 34 shares during the period. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. increased its holdings in Chemed by 633.3% in the 4th quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 88 shares of the company’s stock worth $47,000 after buying an additional 76 shares during the period. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc increased its holdings in Chemed by 600.0% in the 1st quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 98 shares of the company’s stock worth $60,000 after buying an additional 84 shares during the period. 95.85% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Chemed

In other news, CEO Kevin J. Mcnamara sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $615.33, for a total transaction of $615,330.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 101,679 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $62,566,139.07. This trade represents a 0.97% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Spencer S. Lee sold 1,500 shares of Chemed stock in a transaction on Friday, May 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $577.99, for a total transaction of $866,985.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 14,627 shares in the company, valued at $8,454,259.73. This represents a 9.30% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 5,500 shares of company stock valued at $3,213,780 in the last 90 days. 3.29% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CHE has been the topic of several research reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Chemed from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on shares of Chemed from $667.00 to $674.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, April 28th.

Chemed Trading Up 1.7%

Shares of NYSE:CHE opened at $557.97 on Friday. Chemed Co. has a twelve month low of $512.12 and a twelve month high of $623.61. The company’s 50 day moving average is $571.86 and its 200 day moving average is $565.72. The company has a market cap of $8.16 billion, a PE ratio of 28.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 0.54.

Chemed (NYSE:CHE) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 analysts’ expectations of $641.78 million. Chemed had a net margin of 12.69% and a return on equity of 27.86%. The business’s revenue was up 9.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $5.20 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Chemed Co. will post 21.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Chemed Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 17th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 29th will be paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 29th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.36%. Chemed’s payout ratio is 9.74%.

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.