Loomis Sayles & Co. L P Boosts Stock Holdings in Chemed Co. (NYSE:CHE)

Loomis Sayles & Co. L P boosted its position in Chemed Co. (NYSE:CHE) by 25.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 36,462 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 7,303 shares during the quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P’s holdings in Chemed were worth $19,317,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Chemed by 8.1% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 122,788 shares of the company’s stock valued at $73,792,000 after purchasing an additional 9,178 shares during the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Chemed by 30.8% in the third quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 849 shares of the company’s stock valued at $510,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the period. FMR LLC lifted its stake in shares of Chemed by 23.8% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 238,616 shares of the company’s stock valued at $143,401,000 after buying an additional 45,917 shares in the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its holdings in Chemed by 36.2% in the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 26,381 shares of the company’s stock worth $15,854,000 after buying an additional 7,007 shares during the period. Finally, Townsquare Capital LLC purchased a new position in Chemed in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $4,115,000. 95.85% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently issued reports on CHE. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on Chemed from $633.00 to $667.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, March 14th. StockNews.com upgraded Chemed from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th.

Chemed Stock Performance

Shares of CHE stock opened at $605.94 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $8.87 billion, a PE ratio of 30.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 0.43. Chemed Co. has a 52-week low of $512.12 and a 52-week high of $642.68. The business’s fifty day moving average is $574.16 and its 200 day moving average is $566.71.

Chemed Announces Dividend

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

Insider Transactions at Chemed

In related news, CEO Kevin J. Mcnamara sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 6th. The shares were 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 approximately $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 Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP Brian C. Judkins purchased 145 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, December 30th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $519.50 per share, for a total transaction of $75,327.50. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 1,678 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $871,721. This represents a 9.46 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 3.32% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.