Allworth Financial LP Buys 1,991 Shares of First Merchants Co. (NASDAQ:FRME)

Allworth Financial LP lifted its stake in First Merchants Co. (NASDAQ:FRME) by 270.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,728 shares of the bank’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,991 shares during the period. Allworth Financial LP’s holdings in First Merchants were worth $109,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Assetmark Inc. grew its holdings in shares of First Merchants by 12.0% in the third quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 3,616 shares of the bank’s stock worth $135,000 after purchasing an additional 388 shares during the last quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in First Merchants by 108.3% during the 3rd quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 750 shares of the bank’s stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 390 shares in the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC grew its holdings in First Merchants by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 83,696 shares of the bank’s stock worth $3,113,000 after acquiring an additional 566 shares in the last quarter. KBC Group NV grew its holdings in First Merchants by 27.9% during the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 3,052 shares of the bank’s stock worth $122,000 after acquiring an additional 665 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nisa Investment Advisors LLC grew its holdings in First Merchants by 139.1% during the 4th quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,289 shares of the bank’s stock worth $51,000 after acquiring an additional 750 shares in the last quarter. 73.92% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at First Merchants

In other First Merchants news, President Michael J. Stewart sold 7,248 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 16th. The shares were 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 directly owns 92,664 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,052,196.72. This trade represents a 7.25 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 1.32% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

First Merchants Stock Down 1.5 %

NASDAQ:FRME opened at $43.42 on Monday. First Merchants Co. 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 $2.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.70 and a beta of 1.07. 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’s 50-day simple moving average is $41.63 and its 200-day simple moving average is $39.95.

First Merchants (NASDAQ:FRME) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The bank reported $1.00 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.90 by $0.10. First Merchants had a net margin of 18.76% and a return on equity of 9.23%. On average, equities analysts anticipate that First Merchants Co. will post 3.79 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

First Merchants Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed 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 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.22%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. First Merchants’s payout ratio is currently 40.94%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on shares of First Merchants from $50.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Raymond James reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $50.00 target price (up from $42.00) on shares of First Merchants in a report on Friday, January 31st. Piper Sandler reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $55.00 target price (up from $52.00) on shares of First Merchants in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Hovde Group upgraded shares of First Merchants from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $50.00 target price on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $49.00.

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.