American Century Companies Inc. Lowers Holdings in First Merchants Corporation $FRME

Key Points

• American Century Companies Inc. reduced its stake in First Merchants Corporation by 20.8%, selling 289,600 shares and retaining 1,099,458 shares valued at approximately $44.46 million.
• Multiple large investors, including LPL Financial and Barclays PLC, increased their positions in First Merchants during the fourth quarter, indicating continued interest as hedge funds and institutional investors own 73.92% of the company’s stock.
• First Merchants announced a quarterly dividend of $0.36 per share, reflecting a 3.6% dividend yield, with the payout date set for September 19th.

American Century Companies Inc. trimmed its holdings in First Merchants Corporation (NASDAQ:FRME - Free Report) by 20.8% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,099,458 shares of the bank's stock after selling 289,600 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. owned 1.89% of First Merchants worth $44,462,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of FRME. Westend Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of First Merchants in the first quarter valued at about $46,000. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. raised its position in shares of First Merchants by 314.5% in the first quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 1,318 shares of the bank's stock valued at $53,000 after buying an additional 1,000 shares during the last quarter. Spectrum Wealth Counsel LLC acquired a new stake in shares of First Merchants in the first quarter valued at about $56,000. Sterling Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of First Merchants by 809.9% in the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 1,838 shares of the bank's stock valued at $73,000 after buying an additional 1,636 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CWM LLC raised its position in shares of First Merchants by 44.2% in the first quarter. CWM LLC now owns 4,669 shares of the bank's stock valued at $189,000 after buying an additional 1,432 shares during the last quarter. 73.92% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

First Merchants Trading Up 0.9%

Shares of FRME traded up $0.37 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $41.42. 220,228 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 231,872. First Merchants Corporation has a twelve month low of $33.13 and a twelve month high of $46.13. The stock has a market cap of $2.39 billion, a PE ratio of 10.73 and a beta of 1.08. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $39.28 and a 200-day simple moving average of $39.05. The company has a quick ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41.

First Merchants (NASDAQ:FRME - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The bank reported $0.98 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.94 by $0.04. First Merchants had a net margin of 21.35% and a return on equity of 9.88%. The business had revenue of $170.52 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $172.13 million. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.68 earnings per share. On average, 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 disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 19th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 5th will be paid a $0.36 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 5th. This represents a $1.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.5%. First Merchants's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 37.31%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Piper Sandler reduced their target price 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. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of First Merchants from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, May 24th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average 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.