First Merchants (NASDAQ:FRME) Sets New 1-Year High – Time to Buy?

First Merchants Co. (NASDAQ:FRME)’s share price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $45.26 and last traded at $45.14, with a volume of 2381 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $44.05.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have issued reports on FRME. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods restated an “outperform” rating and set a $45.00 target price on shares of First Merchants in a research report on Wednesday, August 28th. Stephens lowered First Merchants from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $45.00 to $38.00 in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Piper Sandler cut their target price on First Merchants from $50.00 to $47.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, October 28th. Finally, Hovde Group started coverage on First Merchants in a research report on Monday, August 12th. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $38.00 price target on the stock. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, First Merchants currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $41.60.

First Merchants Stock Up 3.1 %

The company has a quick ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $38.75 and a two-hundred day moving average of $36.55. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.54 and a beta of 1.01.

First Merchants (NASDAQ:FRME) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The bank reported $0.84 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.90 by ($0.06). The company had revenue of $265.95 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $160.55 million. First Merchants had a net margin of 16.94% and a return on equity of 8.94%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.94 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that First Merchants Co. will post 3.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

First Merchants Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 6th will be paid a $0.35 dividend. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.08%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 6th. First Merchants’s payout ratio is 46.20%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On First Merchants

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted 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 buying an additional 390 shares during the period. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL bought a new stake in First Merchants in the second quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Quest Partners LLC acquired a new stake in First Merchants during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $45,000. CWM LLC raised its holdings in First Merchants by 511.5% during the 2nd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,920 shares of the bank’s stock worth $64,000 after purchasing an additional 1,606 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. lifted its position in shares of First Merchants by 78.9% in the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,893 shares of the bank’s stock worth $70,000 after purchasing an additional 835 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 73.92% of the company’s stock.

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.