Chemed (NYSE:CHE) Shares Down 4.9% – Here’s Why

Chemed Corporation (NYSE:CHE) dropped 4.9% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as low as $519.51 and last traded at $521.5150. Approximately 131,404 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 39% from the average daily volume of 214,262 shares. The stock had previously closed at $548.56.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on CHE shares. Bank of America reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Chemed in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Oppenheimer upped their price target on shares of Chemed from $500.00 to $590.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Weiss Ratings raised Chemed from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Friday, July 17th. Wall Street Zen raised Chemed from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 1st. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their target price on Chemed from $436.00 to $548.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, July 30th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $530.75.

Chemed Stock Down 4.9%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a current ratio of 0.91 and a quick ratio of 0.89. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $506.04 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $448.64. The stock has a market cap of $6.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.06 and a beta of 0.51.

Chemed (NYSE:CHE) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The company reported $6.06 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.60 by $0.46. The business had revenue of $673.25 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $665.04 million. Chemed had a return on equity of 31.77% and a net margin of 10.60%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $4.27 EPS. Chemed has set its FY 2026 guidance at 25.000-25.750 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Chemed Corporation will post 23.18 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Chemed Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 3rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 17th will be given a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 17th. This is a positive change from Chemed’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.5%. Chemed’s payout ratio is currently 14.06%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Chemed

In related news, CEO Kevin J. Mcnamara sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $541.16, for a total value of $1,082,320.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 70,418 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $38,107,404.88. This trade represents a 2.76% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Patrick P. Grace sold 190 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $532.00, for a total value of $101,080.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 3,533 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,879,556. This represents a 5.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last quarter, insiders sold 6,537 shares of company stock worth $3,406,014. 3.33% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of CHE. Monetary Solutions Ltd purchased a new stake in Chemed in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Chemed during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. BOK Financial Private Wealth Inc. bought a new stake in Chemed in the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in Chemed in the 2nd quarter valued at about $34,000. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its position in shares of Chemed by 7,500.0% during the 2nd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 76 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.85% of the company’s stock.

About Chemed

Chemed Corporation is a diversified provider of essential home services and healthcare solutions in the United States. Headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio, the company operates through two principal business segments—Roto-Rooter and Vitas Healthcare. Since its founding in 1974, Chemed has built a reputation for reliability and expertise, serving both residential and commercial customers across a broad range of markets.

The Roto-Rooter segment offers a comprehensive suite of plumbing, drain cleaning and water restoration services.