Comparing Chemed (CHE) & Its Competitors

Chemed (NYSE:CHE) is one of 235 publicly-traded companies in the “Healthcare Providers & Services” industry, but how does it contrast to its competitors? We will compare Chemed to similar companies based on the strength of its earnings, analyst recommendations, profitability, dividends, valuation, institutional ownership and risk.

Profitability

This table compares Chemed and its competitors’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Chemed	10.60%	31.77%	18.90%
Chemed Competitors	-7.68%	-139.71%	-1.48%

Volatility and Risk

Chemed has a beta of 0.51, suggesting that its stock price is 49% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Chemed’s competitors have a beta of 0.98, suggesting that their average stock price is 2% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Dividends

Chemed pays an annual dividend of $2.80 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.5%. Chemed pays out 14.1% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. As a group, “Healthcare Providers & Services” companies pay a dividend yield of 1.6% and pay out 25.4% of their earnings in the form of a dividend. Chemed has raised its dividend for 16 consecutive years.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Chemed and its competitors gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Net Income	Price/Earnings Ratio
Chemed	$2.53 billion	$265.24 million	25.87
Chemed Competitors	$20.60 billion	$281.76 million	-2.38

Chemed’s competitors have higher revenue and earnings than Chemed. Chemed is trading at a higher price-to-earnings ratio than its competitors, indicating that it is currently more expensive than other companies in its industry.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

95.8% of Chemed shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 56.9% of shares of all “Healthcare Providers & Services” companies are held by institutional investors. 3.3% of Chemed shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 15.4% of shares of all “Healthcare Providers & Services” companies are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and recommmendations for Chemed and its competitors, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Chemed	0	5	1	0	2.17
Chemed Competitors	1798	7563	12998	790	2.55

Chemed currently has a consensus price target of $530.75, indicating a potential upside of 3.02%. As a group, “Healthcare Providers & Services” companies have a potential upside of 14.74%. Given Chemed’s competitors stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Chemed has less favorable growth aspects than its competitors.

Summary

Chemed competitors beat Chemed on 9 of the 15 factors compared.

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. The company was incorporated in 1970 and is headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio.