At a glance
Chemed Corp is worth $6.94B, about 29 times its fiscal 2025 earnings. Revenue grew 4.1% to $2.53B in fiscal 2025, with 10.5% kept as profit; over 5 years it has grown 4.0% a year. It pays a 0.47% dividend yield, raised every year for at least 9 years, and returned $1.68B to shareholders in dividends and buybacks over FY2021–FY2025. The stock returned +22.2% over the past year with dividends reinvested and +4.0% a year over five years, against +11.5% and +11.7% for the S&P 500. At its worst it fell 30.6% in the 2020 crash (S&P 500: 33.7%) and 17.1% in the 2022 bear market (S&P 500: 24.5%), and was back at its earlier high 5 months after the low.
The business in plain English
Chemed is a parent company that owns two very different businesses: VITAS, one of the largest hospice providers in the US, and Roto-Rooter, the plumbing and drain-cleaning brand. Each runs day to day on its own, while the corporate office handles long-term strategy, major investment decisions and picking each unit's leaders. Chemed began in 1970 as a subsidiary of W.R. Grace & Co. and has bought or sold twelve significant business units since.
VITAS is the bigger piece, with about $1.63 billion, or 64.4%, of Chemed's $2.53 billion in revenue for the year ended December 31, 2025. Hospice is comfort-focused care for people with a terminal illness, rather than treatment aimed at a cure. VITAS delivers it through teams of doctors, nurses, home health aides, social workers, clergy and volunteers. Over 90% of VITAS revenue comes from Medicare, the federal health program mainly for older Americans, and a significant portion of the business is in Florida.
Roto-Rooter brought in about $900 million, or 35.6% of revenue. It sells plumbing, drain cleaning, excavation and water restoration services to homeowners and businesses through company-owned operations, independent contractors and franchisees (local owners who pay to use the brand). The Roto-Rooter name has been advertised since 1935. Demand shifts with weather, such as unusual rainfall or temperatures.
Price history
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CHE +22.2% over the year to Oct 28, 2026, total return with dividends reinvested.
How it makes money
By business segment
| Segment Vitas | $1.63B | 64.4% |
| Segment Roto Rooter | $899.9M | 35.6% |
Latest results
- In Q3 FY2026 (ended Sep 30, 2026), revenue was $690.9M, up 10.6% from a year earlier, and net income was $71.6M (+11.5%).
- For fiscal 2025, revenue was $2.53B (+4.1% year over year; +4.0% a year from FY2020 to FY2025) with a 10.5% net margin.
Financial health check
| Revenue growth a year (FY2020–FY2025) | +4.0% watch |
|---|---|
| Operating margin | 13.4% watch |
| Free cash flow margin | 12.9% good |
| Return on equity (FY2025) | 27.1% good |
| Return on assets (FY2025) | 17.2% good |
| Net cash (cash minus debt) | $-187.6M weak |
| Fiscal year | Revenue | Net income | Free cash flow |
|---|---|---|---|
| FY2020 | $2.08B | $319.5M | $430.5M |
| FY2021 | $2.14B | $268.6M | $249.9M |
| FY2022 | $2.13B | $249.6M | $252.6M |
| FY2023 | $2.26B | $272.5M | $273.4M |
| FY2024 | $2.43B | $302.0M | $368.0M |
| FY2025 | $2.53B | $265.2M | $325.5M |
Valuation snapshot
| Market value | $6.94B |
|---|---|
| P/E ratio | 29.1 |
| Dividend yield | 0.47% |
Rank among 1514 US companies
Market value at each year end
Chemed’s market value went from $2.60B at the end of 2016 to $6.94B on Oct 28, 2026, about 2.7 times as much; since the end of 2025 it is up 15%.
Show as a table
| Year end | Market value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| Oct 28, 2026 | $6.94B | +14.5% |
| 2025 | $6.06B | -23.7% |
| 2024 | $7.94B | -9.9% |
| 2023 | $8.81B | +16.0% |
| 2022 | $7.59B | -6.8% |
| 2021 | $8.14B | -4.1% |
| 2020 | $8.50B | +20.8% |
| 2019 | $7.03B | +55.0% |
| 2018 | $4.54B | +16.9% |
| 2017 | $3.88B | +49.1% |
| 2016 | $2.60B |
Price behavior
| YTD | 1 yr | 3 yr | 5 yr | 10 yr | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CHE price data to Oct 28, 2026 | +25.2% | +22.2% | -1.5% | +4.0% | +14.9% |
Show as a table
| Year | Price data |
|---|---|
| 2026 (to date) | +25.1% |
| 2025 | -18.9% |
| 2024 | -9.1% |
| 2023 | +14.9% |
| 2022 | -3.2% |
| 2021 | -0.4% |
| 2020 | +21.6% |
| 2019 | +55.6% |
| 2018 | +17.0% |
| 2017 | +52.3% |
| 2016 | +7.9% |
| 2015 | +42.8% |
| 2014 | +39.1% |
| 2013 | +12.9% |
| 2012 | +35.4% |
| 2011 | -18.6% |
| 2010 | +33.6% |
| 2009 | +21.6% |
| 2008 | -28.4% |
| 2007 | +51.8% |
| 2006 | -25.2% |
| 2008 financial crisis stocks fell Oct 9, 2007 – Mar 9, 2009 | Lost 43.9% over that stretch · deepest drop along the way 50.3%, back to its old high 26.2 months after the low |
|---|---|
| 2020 COVID crash stocks fell Feb 19, 2020 – Mar 23, 2020 | Lost 29.9% over that stretch · deepest drop along the way 30.6%, back to its old high 4.6 months after the low |
| 2022 bear market stocks fell Jan 3, 2022 – Oct 12, 2022 | Lost 17.1% over that stretch · deepest drop along the way 17.1%, back to its old high 4.6 months after the low |
Insider activity
Form 4 filings from 2025-10-30 to 2026-10-30 (25 read): 0 open-market purchases and 8 sales ($5.7M).
| Date | Insider | Type | Value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 21, 2026 | Kevin J Mcnamara president and CEO, Director | sell | $1.1M |
| Aug 3, 2026 | Kevin J Mcnamara president and CEO, Director | sell | $1.1M |
| Sep 28, 2026 | Kevin J Mcnamara president and CEO, Director | sell | $1.0M |
| Sep 18, 2026 | Kevin J Mcnamara president and CEO, Director | sell | $1.0M |
| Jun 9, 2026 | Andrea R Lindell Director | sell | $603K |
Who owns it
Large shareholders (13G filings)
| AQR Capital Management, LLC | 7.25% | Jun 30, 2026 |
| Vanguard Portfolio Management | 5.93% | Mar 31, 2026 |
| Vanguard Capital Management | 5.4% | Mar 31, 2026 |
ETFs with the most weight in CHE
| KONG Formidable Fortress ETF | 3.47% |
| NBSM Neuberger Berman Small-Mid Cap ETF | 3.14% |
| OSCV Opus Small Cap Value ETF | 2.65% |
| REGL ProShares S&P MidCap 400 Dividend Aristocrats ETF | 2.22% |
| OUSM ALPS | O’Shares U.S. Small-Cap Quality Dividend ETF | 2.2% |
| PRAY FIS Christian Stock Fund | 2.02% |
| XHS SPDR S&P Health Care Services ETF | 1.88% |
| XMHQ Invesco S&P MidCap Quality ETF | 1.62% |
What could go wrong
- Heavy reliance on Medicare payments. Over 90% of VITAS revenue comes from Medicare, and VITAS made up 64.4% of Chemed's fiscal 2025 revenue. Changes to Medicare payment rates or methods could significantly reduce revenue and profits.
- Nursing home payment rules could change. Between 15% and 20% of the days of care VITAS provides go to nursing home residents. Changes in payment rules for their hospice care and room and board could reduce revenue and profits.
- Strict hospice rules and claims reviews. VITAS must follow detailed Medicare rules on staffing, care plans and records, and faces surveys, audits and claims reviews. Breaking them can bring sanctions, up to being dropped from Medicare.
- Heavy concentration in Florida. VITAS has its headquarters and a significant portion of its operations in Florida, so state rule changes or local disruptions there could hit results harder than at a more spread-out provider.
- Shortages of nurses, aides and plumbers. A nationwide shortage of qualified nurses and aides could push up wages at VITAS and limit growth. Roto-Rooter competes hard for licensed plumbers, and too few skilled workers could cap the jobs it handles.
- Crowded plumbing market, costlier online marketing. Roto-Rooter faces many local and regional rivals, plus home-service companies backed by private equity buyout firms. Winning customers online may get harder and pricier as search engines change and people use artificial intelligence tools.
Recent events
- Quarterly results released
- Quarterly results released
- Shareholder vote results
- Quarterly results released
- Major agreement signed; New debt or financial obligation
- Quarterly results released
For income and retirement investors
Chemed pays a small but steadily rising dividend, raising it at least nine years in a row through fiscal 2025. Dividends per share grew from $1.32 in 2020 to $2.20 in 2025, about 10.8% a year. They used just 11.9% of 2025 earnings and 9.7% of free cash flow (cash left after running and investing in the business). With a yield of 0.47% as of October 28, 2026, the stock offers little income on its own. Share buybacks, where the company repurchases its own stock, are the bigger cash return: about $1.55 billion over fiscal 2021–2025, versus $126 million in dividends.
In past downturns, the shares fell 50.3% during the 2008 financial crisis and took about 26 months to recover. They fell 30.6% in the 2020 COVID crash and 17.1% in the 2022 bear market (a long slide in stock prices), recovering both times in about five months. Single stocks carry more risk than diversified funds.
Questions investors ask
How does Chemed make money?
Chemed makes money from two businesses. VITAS, its hospice and palliative care arm, brought in about $1.63 billion, or 64.4% of revenue, for the year ended December 31, 2025, and gets over 90% of its revenue from Medicare. Roto-Rooter, which provides plumbing, drain cleaning, excavation and water restoration to homes and businesses, brought in about $900 million, or 35.6%. Total revenue was about $2.53 billion, up 4.1%, while net income fell 12.2% to $265 million.
Does Chemed raise its dividend every year?
Yes. Chemed has raised its regular dividend at least nine years in a row through fiscal 2025, and the streak may be longer. Dividends per share climbed from $1.32 in 2020 to $2.20 in 2025, roughly 10.8% growth a year. The dividend is small compared with the share price, though: the yield was 0.47% as of October 28, 2026, and dividends used only 11.9% of 2025 earnings.
How dependent is Chemed on Medicare?
Heavily. Over 90% of VITAS revenue comes from Medicare, the government health program mainly for older Americans, and VITAS made up 64.4% of Chemed's revenue in fiscal 2025. The company warns that losing some or all of its Medicare revenue would seriously hurt results, and that changes in Medicare payment rates or rules could significantly affect VITAS revenue and profits. Roto-Rooter, by contrast, has a large and diverse customer base.
Why does Chemed own both Roto-Rooter and a hospice company?
Because Chemed is set up to buy, run and sell diverse businesses with the aim of building shareholder value. Its units share few functions, such as sales, marketing or purchasing, and run day to day on their own. The corporate office handles long-term strategy, big decisions about where to invest money, financial reporting and choosing each unit's leaders. Chemed has bought or sold twelve significant business units since it began, and it was once called Roto-Rooter Inc.
How has Chemed stock performed over the long term?
Strongly over 10 years, but weakly over three. As of October 28, 2026, the share price had gained about 14.9% a year over 10 years and about 4% a year over five years, while losing about 1.5% a year over three years. It fell 9.11% in 2024 and 18.87% in 2025, then rose 25.2% from the start of 2026 through October 28. In the three years to that date, it dropped as much as 42.9% from a peak.