First Merchants (NASDAQ:FRME) Stock Rating Upgraded by Stephens

Key Points

• Stephens upgraded First Merchants to a “hold” rating, while the broader analyst consensus remains “Moderate Buy,” with three Buy and three Hold ratings and an average price target of $49.
• First Merchants reported quarterly earnings of $0.74 per share, missing the $1.02 consensus estimate, while revenue of $202.49 million was roughly in line with expectations.
• Institutional ownership stands at 73.92%, with BlackRock initiating a position worth approximately $232.6 million and other major investors increasing their holdings.

First Merchants (NASDAQ:FRME - Get Free Report) was upgraded by analysts at Stephens to a "hold" rating in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday, Zacks reports.

Other equities analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of First Merchants from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Piper Sandler raised their target price on First Merchants from $49.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, June 26th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $49.00.

First Merchants Stock Performance

NASDAQ:FRME opened at $40.03 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.51 billion, a PE ratio of 12.83 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a quick ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. First Merchants has a twelve month low of $34.66 and a twelve month high of $45.33. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $42.35 and its 200 day simple moving average is $41.01.

First Merchants (NASDAQ:FRME - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The bank reported $0.74 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.02 by ($0.28). First Merchants had a net margin of 17.05% and a return on equity of 8.86%. The company had revenue of $202.49 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $202.78 million. On average, analysts anticipate that First Merchants will post 3.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On First Merchants

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in First Merchants during the second quarter worth $232,637,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in First Merchants by 8.4% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,596,017 shares of the bank's stock valued at $139,272,000 after buying an additional 277,977 shares during the period. Systematic Financial Management LP boosted its position in First Merchants by 10.7% during the first quarter. Systematic Financial Management LP now owns 861,995 shares of the bank's stock valued at $33,385,000 after acquiring an additional 83,667 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP grew its holdings in First Merchants by 1.4% during the 1st quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 725,259 shares of the bank's stock worth $28,089,000 after acquiring an additional 9,771 shares during the period. Finally, William Blair Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of First Merchants in the 2nd quarter worth about $27,195,000. 73.92% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

First Merchants Company Profile

First Merchants Corporation is a financial services company headquartered in Muncie, Indiana, and the parent company of First Merchants Bank. The bank provides a broad range of financial products and services to individuals, families, businesses and institutions.

Its offerings include consumer and commercial deposit accounts, residential and commercial lending, business banking, treasury management, mortgage services, investment and wealth management, and trust services. First Merchants also provides specialized financing and advisory solutions for commercial customers and other organizations.

First Merchants serves customers through banking offices and digital channels across Indiana, Ohio, Michigan and Illinois.

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