Fort Washington Investment Advisors Inc. OH Boosts Holdings in Chemed Co. (NYSE:CHE)

Fort Washington Investment Advisors Inc. OH increased its holdings in shares of Chemed Co. (NYSE:CHE) by 36.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 40,898 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 11,020 shares during the period. Fort Washington Investment Advisors Inc. OH owned about 0.27% of Chemed worth $21,668,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. UMB Bank n.a. grew its position in shares of Chemed by 300.0% during the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 52 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont acquired a new position in Chemed during the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. American National Bank & Trust purchased a new stake in shares of Chemed in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $61,000. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in shares of Chemed by 60.5% during the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 138 shares of the company’s stock worth $83,000 after purchasing an additional 52 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quarry LP increased its holdings in Chemed by 721.7% in the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 189 shares of the company’s stock valued at $103,000 after buying an additional 166 shares during the last quarter. 95.85% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Chemed news, EVP Spencer S. Lee sold 732 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $575.62, for a total transaction of $421,353.84. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 18,287 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,526,362.94. This trade represents a 3.85 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Kevin J. Mcnamara sold 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $572.77, for a total value of $1,145,540.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 101,735 shares in the company, valued at approximately $58,270,755.95. The trade was a 1.93 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 3.32% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Chemed Price Performance

NYSE CHE opened at $553.24 on Thursday. The company has a fifty day moving average of $544.80 and a two-hundred day moving average of $563.00. The company has a market capitalization of $8.33 billion, a PE ratio of 27.96, a P/E/G ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.47. Chemed Co. has a 1 year low of $512.12 and a 1 year 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 (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.76 by ($0.12). Chemed had a return on equity of 27.86% and a net margin of 12.69%. The firm had revenue of $606.18 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $612.22 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $5.32 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 7.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts expect that Chemed Co. will post 21.43 earnings per share for the current year.

Chemed Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 6th. Investors of record on Monday, November 18th were paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.36%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 18th. Chemed’s dividend payout ratio is currently 10.11%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have issued reports on CHE. StockNews.com raised Chemed from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, November 30th. Royal Bank of Canada dropped 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 Company 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.