First Merchants (NASDAQ:FRME) VP Sells 5,000 Shares

First Merchants Corporation (NASDAQ:FRME) VP Larry Myers sold 5,000 shares of First Merchants stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $41.50, for a total transaction of $207,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 109,491 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,543,876.50. This trade represents a 4.37% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink.

First Merchants Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ FRME traded down $0.08 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $41.05. 425,843 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 383,256. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.55 and a beta of 0.94. First Merchants Corporation has a one year low of $33.13 and a one year high of $44.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a current ratio of 0.91. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $39.49 and a two-hundred day moving average of $38.60.

First Merchants (NASDAQ:FRME) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, January 26th. The bank reported $0.98 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.96 by $0.02. First Merchants had a return on equity of 9.68% and a net margin of 21.49%.The company had revenue of $178.36 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $172.89 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.10 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that First Merchants Corporation will post 3.79 EPS for the current fiscal year.

First Merchants Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 6th will be given a dividend of $0.36 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 6th. This represents a $1.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.5%. First Merchants’s dividend payout ratio is presently 37.02%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

FRME has been the subject of a number of research reports. Piper Sandler upped their target price on shares of First Merchants from $46.00 to $49.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. Zacks Research downgraded shares of First Merchants from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, December 1st. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of First Merchants in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, First Merchants currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $47.75.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of FRME. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in First Merchants by 361.7% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 771 shares of the bank’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 604 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in First Merchants by 325.7% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 796 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 609 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in shares of First Merchants by 62.1% in the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 987 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $37,000 after acquiring an additional 378 shares in the last quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. bought a new position in shares of First Merchants in the fourth quarter worth about $37,000. Finally, Covestor Ltd grew its position in shares of First Merchants by 68.9% during the fourth quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,042 shares of the bank’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 425 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 73.92% of the company’s stock.

First Merchants Company Profile

First Merchants Corporation, through its subsidiary First Merchants Bank, offers a comprehensive suite of banking and financial services to individuals, businesses and public sector clients. The company’s core business activities include retail and commercial banking, lending, treasury and cash management, and wealth advisory services. With a focus on relationship banking, First Merchants seeks to deliver tailored solutions for deposit accounts, loan financing and other credit products.

On the consumer side, First Merchants provides checking and savings accounts, certificates of deposit, personal and mortgage loans, and electronic banking conveniences.