Chemed (NYSE:CHE) Stock Price Breaks Above 50-Day Moving Average – Time to Sell?

Chemed Corporation (NYSE:CHE) shares crossed above its fifty day moving average during trading on Wednesday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $514.55 and traded as high as $562.24. Chemed shares last traded at $534.7190, with a volume of 325,169 shares.

Chemed News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Chemed this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Chemed reported adjusted earnings of $6.75 per share, exceeding the $6.44 consensus estimate, while revenue rose 10.6% year over year to $690.9 million, ahead of the $685.0 million estimate. Adjusted EPS increased 28.1% from the prior year. Chemed Reports Third-Quarter 2026 Results
• Positive Sentiment: VITAS revenue increased 12.2% to $457.4 million, supported by a 9.4% increase in average daily census and a 7.2% rise in admissions. VITAS adjusted EBITDA, excluding the Medicare cap, climbed 31.4%, with its margin expanding 318 basis points to 20.2%. Chemed Third-Quarter Revenue Rises 10.6%
• Positive Sentiment: Management said full-year 2026 adjusted EPS should be at or slightly above the high end of its guidance issued in July, reinforcing expectations for continued earnings momentum. Chemed Q3 2026 Earnings Call Transcript
• Positive Sentiment: Jefferies upgraded CHE to Buy, citing additional upside potential, while BofA raised its price target to $555 and maintained a Buy rating. Jefferies Upgrades Chemed to Buy
• Neutral Sentiment: Chemed repurchased 125,000 shares for $66 million and reacquired California Roto-Rooter franchise territories for approximately $62.5 million, reflecting capital deployment but also reducing near-term cash balances.
• Negative Sentiment: Roto-Rooter revenue grew 7.5%, but segment net income fell 1.8%, adjusted EBITDA declined 2.5%, and its margin contracted 213 basis points to 20.6%. Chemed Third-Quarter Results
• Negative Sentiment: Reported insider activity was entirely selling over the past six months, including sales by CEO Kevin McNamara, which may weigh modestly on investor sentiment.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on CHE. Oppenheimer upped their target price on shares of Chemed from $500.00 to $590.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, July 31st. Bank of America reissued a “neutral” rating on shares of Chemed in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Chemed from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $520.00 to $620.00 in a research report on Wednesday. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Chemed from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, October 10th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price objective on shares of Chemed from $436.00 to $548.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Chemed currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $583.60.

Chemed Stock Performance

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 stock has a market cap of $6.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.86, a PEG ratio of 2.06 and a beta of 0.51. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $514.55 and a 200 day moving average of $462.04.

Chemed (NYSE:CHE) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 27th. The company reported $6.75 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.44 by $0.31. The firm had revenue of $690.94 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $685.04 million. Chemed had a return on equity of 31.77% and a net margin of 10.60%. The firm’s revenue was up 10.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $5.27 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Chemed Corporation will post 23.55 EPS for the current year.

Chemed Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 3rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 17th were paid a $0.70 dividend. This is a boost from Chemed’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 17th. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.5%. Chemed’s dividend payout ratio is 14.06%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Kevin McNamara sold 2,000 shares of Chemed stock in a transaction on Monday, September 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $513.45, for a total transaction of $1,026,900.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 66,418 shares in the company, valued at $34,102,322.10. The trade was a 2.92% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Patrick Grace sold 190 shares of Chemed stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the director owned 3,533 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,879,556. This represents a 5.10% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 9,190 shares of company stock valued at $4,833,160 in the last three months. 3.33% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Chemed

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of CHE. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in Chemed in the 2nd quarter valued at about $34,000. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its stake in shares of Chemed by 7,500.0% in the 2nd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 76 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 75 shares during the period. Keating Financial Advisory Services Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Chemed in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $36,000. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB increased its holdings in shares of Chemed by 65.3% during the 2nd quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 81 shares of the company’s stock worth $38,000 after buying an additional 32 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Global Retirement Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Chemed during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $49,000. 95.85% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Chemed Company Profile

Chemed Corporation (NYSE:CHE) is a Cincinnati, Ohio-based company that provides healthcare and residential and commercial services through two operating businesses: VITAS Healthcare and Roto-Rooter. Its operations serve customers primarily in the United States, with Roto-Rooter also providing services in Canada.

VITAS Healthcare is a provider of hospice and palliative care for individuals with advanced illnesses. The business delivers care in patients’ homes, hospice inpatient units, hospitals, nursing facilities and other care settings.