Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. Increases Stake in Chemed Co. (NYSE:CHE)

Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in Chemed Co. (NYSE:CHE) by 72.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 840 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 353 shares during the period. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Chemed were worth $445,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in CHE. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in shares of Chemed by 19.1% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 153,957 shares of the company’s stock valued at $83,536,000 after acquiring an additional 24,721 shares during the last quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV raised its position in Chemed by 4.7% during the 2nd quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 1,545 shares of the company’s stock valued at $838,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. Blair William & Co. IL lifted its holdings in Chemed by 3.2% in the 2nd quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 2,476 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,343,000 after buying an additional 76 shares during the period. Hsbc Holdings PLC lifted its holdings in Chemed by 110.0% in the 2nd quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 10,638 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,801,000 after buying an additional 5,572 shares during the period. Finally, XTX Topco Ltd grew its position in shares of Chemed by 51.7% in the 2nd quarter. XTX Topco Ltd now owns 1,344 shares of the company’s stock worth $729,000 after buying an additional 458 shares during the last quarter. 95.85% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Chemed Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:CHE opened at $555.01 on Tuesday. Chemed Co. has a 52-week low of $512.12 and a 52-week high of $654.62. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.04, a P/E/G ratio of 2.04 and a beta of 0.47. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $545.17 and a 200-day moving average price of $562.92.

Chemed (NYSE:CHE) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $612.22 million. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $5.32 EPS. Chemed’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that Chemed Co. will post 21.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Chemed Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 6th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 18th were issued a $0.50 dividend. 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 (DPR) is presently 10.11%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently commented on CHE. StockNews.com raised Chemed from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, November 30th. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their target price on shares of Chemed from $697.00 to $633.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, VP Brian C. Judkins purchased 145 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 30th. The shares were bought at an average price of $519.50 per share, for a total transaction of $75,327.50. Following the purchase, the vice president now directly owns 1,678 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $871,721. This represents a 9.46 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Spencer S. Lee sold 732 shares of Chemed stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $575.62, for a total value of $421,353.84. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 18,287 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,526,362.94. The trade was a 3.85 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 3.32% of the company’s stock.

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.