Empowered Funds LLC Decreases Holdings in First Merchants Corporation $FRME

Key Points

• Empowered Funds LLC reduced its stake in First Merchants Corporation by 12.1%, now owning approximately 195,211 shares worth about $7.89 million.
• First Merchants announced a quarterly dividend of $0.36 per share, scheduled for payment on September 19th, representing an annual yield of 3.6%.
• Wall Street analysts are generally positive, with a consensus rating of "Buy" and a price target of $48.25 for First Merchants stock.

Empowered Funds LLC lessened its stake in First Merchants Corporation (NASDAQ:FRME - Free Report) by 12.1% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 195,211 shares of the bank's stock after selling 26,855 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC owned approximately 0.33% of First Merchants worth $7,894,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in FRME. Bank of America Corp DE grew its position in First Merchants by 18.8% in the 4th quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 120,622 shares of the bank's stock worth $4,812,000 after purchasing an additional 19,063 shares during the period. Citadel Advisors LLC grew its position in First Merchants by 43.2% in the 4th quarter. Citadel Advisors LLC now owns 41,781 shares of the bank's stock worth $1,667,000 after purchasing an additional 12,600 shares during the period. Captrust Financial Advisors grew its position in First Merchants by 4.3% in the 4th quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 21,083 shares of the bank's stock worth $841,000 after purchasing an additional 861 shares during the period. Deutsche Bank AG grew its position in First Merchants by 52.0% in the 4th quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 48,296 shares of the bank's stock worth $1,927,000 after purchasing an additional 16,531 shares during the period. Finally, Graham Capital Management L.P. bought a new stake in First Merchants in the 4th quarter worth approximately $386,000. Institutional investors own 73.92% of the company's stock.

First Merchants Price Performance

FRME stock traded down $0.46 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $39.20. The company had a trading volume of 37,733 shares, compared to its average volume of 277,987. The company has a market capitalization of $2.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.17 and a beta of 1.10. First Merchants Corporation has a 12-month low of $33.13 and a 12-month high of $46.13. The company has a quick ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $40.03 and a 200 day moving average price of $38.72.

First Merchants (NASDAQ:FRME - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The bank reported $0.98 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.94 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $170.52 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $172.13 million. First Merchants had a net margin of 21.35% and a return on equity of 9.88%. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.68 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that First Merchants Corporation will post 3.79 earnings per share for the current year.

First Merchants Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 19th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 5th will be given a dividend of $0.36 per share. This represents a $1.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.7%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 5th. First Merchants's dividend payout ratio is currently 37.31%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have commented on FRME shares. Wall Street Zen raised shares of First Merchants from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, May 24th. Piper Sandler cut their price objective on shares of First Merchants from $49.00 to $48.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, July 28th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, First Merchants presently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $48.25.

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.