American International Group Inc. Sells 410 Shares of Chemed Co. (NYSE:CHE)

American International Group Inc. cut its holdings in Chemed Co. (NYSE:CHE) by 2.0% during the first quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 20,023 shares of the company’s stock after selling 410 shares during the period. American International Group Inc.’s holdings in Chemed were worth $12,853,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in CHE. Raymond James & Associates increased its stake in Chemed by 5.7% during the fourth quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 67,918 shares of the company’s stock valued at $39,715,000 after acquiring an additional 3,654 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. increased its stake in Chemed by 55.8% during the fourth quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 2,308 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,349,000 after acquiring an additional 827 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of Chemed by 46.0% in the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 2,665 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,558,000 after purchasing an additional 840 shares during the period. Fort Washington Investment Advisors Inc. OH grew its stake in shares of Chemed by 4.4% in the 4th quarter. Fort Washington Investment Advisors Inc. OH now owns 31,138 shares of the company’s stock valued at $18,208,000 after purchasing an additional 1,320 shares during the period. Finally, Chicago Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Chemed in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $1,170,000. 95.85% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on CHE shares. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price objective on Chemed from $712.00 to $697.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, May 21st. StockNews.com raised Chemed from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, May 4th.

Chemed Price Performance

Shares of CHE stock traded up $18.09 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $565.57. The company had a trading volume of 97,696 shares, compared to its average volume of 84,378. The company has a 50 day moving average of $544.12 and a 200 day moving average of $583.59. The firm has a market cap of $8.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.24, a P/E/G ratio of 2.23 and a beta of 0.43. Chemed Co. has a 1-year low of $492.84 and a 1-year high of $654.62.

Chemed (NYSE:CHE) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 24th. The company reported $5.47 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.59 by ($0.12). Chemed had a net margin of 12.36% and a return on equity of 30.52%. The firm had revenue of $595.88 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $599.20 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $4.71 EPS. Chemed’s quarterly revenue was up 7.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Chemed Co. will post 21.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Chemed Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 18th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 30th were given a $0.40 dividend. 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 Thursday, May 30th. Chemed’s dividend payout ratio is currently 8.61%.

Insider Activity at Chemed

In related news, CEO Kevin J. Mcnamara sold 4,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $567.54, for a total value of $2,270,160.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 108,549 shares in the company, valued at approximately $61,605,899.46. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other Chemed news, CEO Kevin J. Mcnamara sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $567.54, for a total transaction of $2,270,160.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 108,549 shares in the company, valued at approximately $61,605,899.46. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Patrick P. Grace sold 284 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $540.98, for a total value of $153,638.32. Following the transaction, the director now owns 3,270 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,769,004.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 5,784 shares of company stock worth $3,240,053 in the last quarter. 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.