First Merchants (NASDAQ:FRME) Stock Price Up 4.8% After Earnings Beat

First Merchants Co. (NASDAQ:FRME)’s share price rose 4.8% during trading on Friday after the company announced better than expected quarterly earnings. The company traded as high as $45.20 and last traded at $44.76. Approximately 38,597 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 81% from the average daily volume of 208,220 shares. The stock had previously closed at $42.71.

The bank reported $1.00 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.90 by $0.10. First Merchants had a net margin of 16.94% and a return on equity of 8.94%.

First Merchants Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 6th were issued a $0.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 6th. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.15%. First Merchants’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 46.20%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other First Merchants news, President Michael J. Stewart sold 7,248 shares of the firm’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 completion of the sale, the president now directly owns 92,664 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,052,196.72. This trade represents a 7.25 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 1.32% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of First Merchants

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. New York State Common Retirement Fund grew its position in First Merchants by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 104,763 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $4,179,000 after purchasing an additional 1,822 shares in the last quarter. Peregrine Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of First Merchants by 16.3% during the 4th quarter. Peregrine Capital Management LLC now owns 152,449 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $6,081,000 after acquiring an additional 21,331 shares in the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP increased its stake in shares of First Merchants by 270.1% in the fourth quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 2,728 shares of the bank’s stock worth $109,000 after acquiring an additional 1,991 shares during the last quarter. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of First Merchants during the fourth quarter worth $233,000. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC boosted its position in First Merchants by 5.2% during the fourth quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 222,066 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $8,858,000 after purchasing an additional 10,934 shares during the last quarter. 73.92% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

First Merchants Stock Up 4.1 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 0.90 and a quick ratio of 0.89. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $41.37 and a 200 day simple moving average of $39.35. The stock has a market cap of $2.61 billion, a PE ratio of 14.67 and a beta of 1.06.

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.