First Merchants Co. (NASDAQ:FRME) Receives Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Shares of First Merchants Co. (NASDAQ:FRME) have received a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the five brokerages that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation and four have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price target among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $49.00.

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on FRME. Hovde Group upgraded First Merchants from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $50.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on shares of First Merchants from $50.00 to $52.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $55.00 price objective (up previously from $52.00) on shares of First Merchants in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Raymond James reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $50.00 price objective (up previously from $42.00) on shares of First Merchants in a research note on Friday, January 31st.

First Merchants Price Performance

Shares of FRME opened at $44.55 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a current ratio of 0.90. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $41.57 and a 200-day moving average price of $39.73. First Merchants has a fifty-two week low of $30.55 and a fifty-two week high of $46.13. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.61 billion, a PE ratio of 13.03 and a beta of 1.07.

First Merchants (NASDAQ:FRME) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The bank reported $1.00 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.90 by $0.10. First Merchants had a return on equity of 9.23% and a net margin of 18.76%. Equities analysts predict that First Merchants will post 3.71 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

First Merchants Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be issued a dividend of $0.35 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 6th. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.14%. First Merchants’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 40.94%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other First Merchants news, President Michael J. Stewart sold 7,248 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.73, for a total transaction of $316,955.04. Following the sale, the president now owns 92,664 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,052,196.72. The trade was a 7.25 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 1.32% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Schechter Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in First Merchants by 3.2% in the 4th quarter. Schechter Investment Advisors LLC now owns 7,388 shares of the bank’s stock worth $295,000 after buying an additional 228 shares during the period. Waterfront Wealth Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of First Merchants by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Waterfront Wealth Inc. now owns 26,908 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,073,000 after acquiring an additional 234 shares during the last quarter. US Bancorp DE increased its stake in shares of First Merchants by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 17,308 shares of the bank’s stock worth $690,000 after acquiring an additional 236 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of First Merchants by 3.9% during the fourth quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 7,141 shares of the bank’s stock worth $285,000 after purchasing an additional 269 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Summit Investment Advisors Inc. lifted its position in First Merchants by 6.8% during the fourth quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 6,101 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $243,000 after purchasing an additional 387 shares during the period. 73.92% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

First Merchants Company Profile

First Merchants Corporation operates as the financial holding company for First Merchants Bank that provides community banking services. The company offers a range of financial services, including time, savings, and demand deposits; and consumer, commercial, agri-business, public finance, and real estate mortgage loans.