First Merchants Co. (NASDAQ:FRME) Shares Sold by Fisher Asset Management LLC

Fisher Asset Management LLC decreased its position in First Merchants Co. (NASDAQ:FRME) by 1.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 478,054 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 9,444 shares during the quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC owned 0.81% of First Merchants worth $17,726,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in First Merchants by 1.3% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 6,539,413 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $181,926,000 after purchasing an additional 84,858 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in First Merchants by 7.4% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,074,407 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $114,001,000 after purchasing an additional 211,113 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. increased its stake in First Merchants by 7.8% in the third quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 992,748 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $27,618,000 after purchasing an additional 71,527 shares during the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in First Merchants by 10.1% in the fourth quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 978,469 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $36,282,000 after purchasing an additional 89,816 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its stake in First Merchants by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 853,075 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $31,632,000 after purchasing an additional 11,842 shares during the last quarter. 73.92% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at First Merchants

In related news, Director Patrick J. Fehring sold 23,936 shares of First Merchants stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.51, for a total value of $778,159.36. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 122,706 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,989,172.06. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

First Merchants Stock Performance

Shares of FRME opened at $31.74 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. The firm has a market cap of $1.86 billion, a PE ratio of 9.15 and a beta of 1.07. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $33.56 and its 200-day simple moving average is $34.29. First Merchants Co. has a 12-month low of $25.70 and a 12-month high of $38.16.

First Merchants (NASDAQ:FRME) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The bank reported $0.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.82 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $153.70 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $154.95 million. First Merchants had a net margin of 20.15% and a return on equity of 10.21%. As a group, equities analysts predict that First Merchants Co. will post 3.25 EPS for the current year.

First Merchants Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 21st. Investors of record on Friday, June 7th will be given a $0.35 dividend. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.41%. This is a positive change from First Merchants’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.34. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 7th. First Merchants’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 40.35%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. StockNews.com upgraded shares of First Merchants from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 2nd. Piper Sandler raised their target price on shares of First Merchants from $41.00 to $42.50 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, April 29th.

First Merchants 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.