Amica Mutual Insurance Co. Decreases Holdings in Chemed Co. (NYSE:CHE)

Amica Mutual Insurance Co. trimmed its stake in shares of Chemed Co. (NYSE:CHE) by 27.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,571 shares of the company’s stock after selling 985 shares during the period. Amica Mutual Insurance Co.’s holdings in Chemed were worth $1,503,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in CHE. GAMMA Investing LLC purchased a new position in Chemed during the fourth quarter valued at $37,000. Larson Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Chemed in the third quarter valued at about $44,000. Legacy Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Chemed in the third quarter valued at about $48,000. Covestor Ltd raised its position in shares of Chemed by 27.4% in the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 144 shares of the company’s stock valued at $75,000 after buying an additional 31 shares during the last quarter. Finally, ORG Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Chemed in the third quarter valued at about $126,000. 95.85% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Chemed Trading Up 1.1 %

Chemed stock traded up $6.09 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $566.51. 92,512 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 80,207. Chemed Co. has a fifty-two week low of $492.84 and a fifty-two week high of $654.62. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.16, a PEG ratio of 2.28 and a beta of 0.42. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $623.29 and its 200 day simple moving average is $591.87.

Chemed (NYSE:CHE) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 24th. The company reported $4.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $5.09 by ($0.41). Chemed had a return on equity of 30.52% and a net margin of 12.36%. The firm had revenue of $589.23 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $587.18 million. Equities analysts anticipate that Chemed Co. will post 21.79 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Chemed Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 26th were given a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.28%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 23rd. Chemed’s dividend payout ratio is presently 8.61%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Chemed

In other Chemed news, VP Brian C. Judkins sold 11,158 shares of Chemed stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $645.00, for a total transaction of $7,196,910.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 1,422 shares in the company, valued at $917,190. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, CFO Michael D. Witzeman sold 2,650 shares of Chemed stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $643.14, for a total value of $1,704,321.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 2,882 shares in the company, valued at $1,853,529.48. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP Brian C. Judkins sold 11,158 shares of Chemed stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $645.00, for a total transaction of $7,196,910.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 1,422 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $917,190. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 15,808 shares of company stock worth $10,184,531 over the last three months. Insiders own 3.32% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on shares of Chemed from $604.00 to $712.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, March 4th. StockNews.com cut shares of Chemed from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday. Finally, Oppenheimer increased their target price on shares of Chemed from $625.00 to $650.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 29th.

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.