MML Investors Services LLC Boosts Position in Chemed Co. (NYSE:CHE)

MML Investors Services LLC grew its holdings in shares of Chemed Co. (NYSE:CHE) by 3.9% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 1,457 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 55 shares during the period. MML Investors Services LLC’s holdings in Chemed were worth $876,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. HighTower Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Chemed by 78.0% in the 3rd quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 3,730 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,246,000 after purchasing an additional 1,634 shares in the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC grew its stake in shares of Chemed by 110.0% in the second quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 10,638 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,801,000 after buying an additional 5,572 shares in the last quarter. XTX Topco Ltd raised its holdings in shares of Chemed by 111.5% during the 3rd quarter. XTX Topco Ltd now owns 2,843 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,709,000 after buying an additional 1,499 shares during the period. Evergreen Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Chemed during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $7,812,000. Finally, Quest Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Chemed by 634.3% in the 2nd quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 1,990 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,080,000 after acquiring an additional 1,719 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.85% of the company’s stock.

Chemed Trading Up 0.3 %

Chemed stock opened at $523.16 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $7.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 0.46. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $564.38 and a 200-day moving average of $563.89. Chemed Co. has a 52 week low of $516.91 and a 52 week high of $654.62.

Chemed (NYSE:CHE) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The company reported $5.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $5.76 by ($0.12). Chemed had a net margin of 12.69% and a return on equity of 27.86%. The firm had revenue of $606.18 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $612.22 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $5.32 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 7.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts predict that Chemed Co. will post 21.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Chemed Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed 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 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.38%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 18th. Chemed’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 10.11%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on CHE. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price objective 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. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Chemed from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, November 30th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Chemed news, EVP Spencer S. Lee sold 732 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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. This trade represents a 3.85 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Kevin J. Mcnamara sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $598.81, for a total value of $1,197,620.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 103,735 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $62,117,555.35. This trade represents a 1.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 5,132 shares of company stock valued at $3,003,502 over the last 90 days. 3.32% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.