Thrivent Financial for Lutherans Cuts Stake in Chemed Co. (NYSE:CHE)

Thrivent Financial for Lutherans cut its stake in Chemed Co. (NYSE:CHE) by 35.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 94,466 shares of the company’s stock after selling 51,551 shares during the quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans owned about 0.63% of Chemed worth $50,048,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Chemed during the fourth quarter valued at about $42,023,000. FMR LLC grew its stake in shares of Chemed by 23.8% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 238,616 shares of the company’s stock valued at $143,401,000 after acquiring an additional 45,917 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Chemed by 114.1% during the fourth quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 74,658 shares of the company’s stock valued at $39,554,000 after acquiring an additional 39,791 shares in the last quarter. Aureus Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Chemed by 3,147.2% during the third quarter. Aureus Asset Management LLC now owns 29,939 shares of the company’s stock valued at $17,993,000 after acquiring an additional 29,017 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Boston Trust Walden Corp grew its stake in shares of Chemed by 10.0% during the fourth quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp now owns 242,172 shares of the company’s stock valued at $128,303,000 after acquiring an additional 22,105 shares in the last quarter. 95.85% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Chemed Stock Performance

NYSE:CHE opened at $603.51 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $8.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 0.43. Chemed Co. has a one year low of $512.12 and a one year high of $653.13. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $564.89 and a 200 day simple moving average of $565.35.

Chemed Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Monday, February 24th were paid a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 24th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.33%. Chemed’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 10.05%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Chemed news, CEO Kevin J. Mcnamara sold 2,000 shares of Chemed stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $593.67, for a total value of $1,187,340.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 102,679 shares in the company, valued at $60,957,441.93. The trade was a 1.91 % 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, VP Brian C. Judkins bought 145 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 30th. The stock was bought at an average price of $519.50 per share, with a total value of $75,327.50. Following the completion of the purchase, the vice president now owns 1,678 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $871,721. This trade represents a 9.46 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 3.32% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently weighed in on CHE shares. StockNews.com upgraded Chemed from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on Chemed from $633.00 to $667.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, March 14th.

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.