First Merchants Corporation (NASDAQ:FRME) Stock Has Average Price Target of $46.00 According to Analysts

Key Points

• Analysts have a “Moderate Buy” consensus on First Merchants, with three buy ratings and two holds. The average 12-month price target is $46.00, compared with shares opening at $41.36.
• First Merchants beat quarterly expectations, reporting $1.10 in EPS versus the $1.04 consensus and revenue of $205.33 million versus $203.94 million expected.
• The company pays a quarterly dividend of $0.37 per share, or $1.48 annualized, representing a 3.6% yield; institutional investors own approximately 73.92% of the stock.

Shares of First Merchants Corporation (NASDAQ:FRME - Get Free Report) have received an average recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the five research firms that are covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and three have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $46.00.

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Piper Sandler dropped their price target on First Merchants from $51.00 to $46.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, October 5th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b)" rating on shares of First Merchants in a research report on Friday. Raymond James Financial upgraded shares of First Merchants from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $46.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Tuesday, October 6th. Finally, Stephens raised shares of First Merchants to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 22nd.

First Merchants Price Performance

Shares of FRME opened at $41.36 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $40.60 and its 200 day simple moving average is $40.73. First Merchants has a 1-year low of $34.66 and a 1-year high of $45.33. The company has a market cap of $2.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.80 and a beta of 0.87.

First Merchants (NASDAQ:FRME - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 21st. The bank reported $1.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.04 by $0.06. First Merchants had a return on equity of 9.14% and a net margin of 17.56%. The company had revenue of $205.33 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $203.94 million. On average, research analysts forecast that First Merchants will post 3.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

First Merchants Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 18th. Investors of record on Friday, September 4th were issued a dividend of $0.37 per share. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 4th. First Merchants's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 45.82%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On First Merchants

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of FRME. Fiduciary Financial Advisors acquired a new position in shares of First Merchants during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $32,000. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio bought a new stake in shares of First Merchants in the second quarter valued at approximately $43,000. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in shares of First Merchants by 24.9% during the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,403 shares of the bank's stock worth $61,000 after purchasing an additional 280 shares in the last quarter. Ancora Advisors LLC bought a new position in First Merchants in the second quarter valued at approximately $78,000. Finally, Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC acquired a new stake in First Merchants in the second quarter valued at about $81,000. Institutional investors own 73.92% of the company's stock.

First Merchants Company Profile

First Merchants Corporation is a financial services holding company headquartered in Muncie, Indiana. Through its principal subsidiary, First Merchants Bank, the company provides banking and related financial services to individuals, families, businesses and institutions.

First Merchants Bank offers deposit accounts, consumer and commercial lending, mortgage services, treasury and cash-management solutions, online and mobile banking, investment management and trust services. The company also provides wealth-management and insurance-related services through affiliated operations.

Founded in 1893, First Merchants has expanded through organic growth and acquisitions and serves customers across Indiana, Ohio and Michigan.

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