First Merchants (NASDAQ:FRME) Shares Gap Down – Should You Sell?

First Merchants Co. (NASDAQ:FRME)’s stock price gapped down before the market opened on Friday . The stock had previously closed at $44.10, but opened at $42.77. First Merchants shares last traded at $44.18, with a volume of 26,400 shares traded.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

FRME has been the subject of several analyst reports. Raymond James reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $50.00 target price (up from $42.00) on shares of First Merchants in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Piper Sandler reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $55.00 price objective (up from $52.00) on shares of First Merchants in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on First Merchants from $50.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Hovde Group raised First Merchants from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $50.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, First Merchants currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $49.00.

First Merchants Price Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $2.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.70 and a beta of 1.07. The business has a 50-day moving average of $41.63 and a 200 day moving average of $39.92. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41.

First Merchants (NASDAQ:FRME) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The bank reported $1.00 EPS for the quarter, beating 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%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that First Merchants Co. will post 3.79 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

First Merchants Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 21st. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th will be given a $0.35 dividend. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.22%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. First Merchants’s payout ratio is 40.94%.

Insider Buying and Selling at First Merchants

In other First Merchants news, President Michael J. Stewart sold 7,248 shares of First Merchants 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 completion of the transaction, 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 is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 1.32% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On First Merchants

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its stake in First Merchants by 67.9% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 134,136 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $5,368,000 after purchasing an additional 54,265 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its stake in First Merchants by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 886,088 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $32,962,000 after purchasing an additional 11,521 shares during the last quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd boosted its stake in First Merchants by 123.8% during the 3rd quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd now owns 24,174 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $899,000 after purchasing an additional 13,370 shares during the last quarter. Sentinel Pension Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in First Merchants during the 4th quarter valued at about $607,000. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC boosted its stake in shares of First Merchants by 6.1% in the 3rd quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 211,132 shares of the bank’s stock worth $7,854,000 after buying an additional 12,050 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 73.92% of the company’s stock.

About First Merchants

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.