Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. Reduces Stock Holdings in First Merchants Corporation $FRME

Key Points

• Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. has reduced its stake in First Merchants Corporation by 2.7%, now holding approximately 711,840 shares valued at $28.79 million.
• The company recently reported $0.98 earnings per share for the quarter, exceeding expectations, with total revenue of $170.52 million.
• First Merchants declared a quarterly dividend of $0.36, with a yield of 3.7% and a current dividend payout ratio of 37.31%.

Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. reduced its stake in shares of First Merchants Corporation (NASDAQ:FRME - Free Report) by 2.7% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 711,840 shares of the bank's stock after selling 19,573 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. owned about 1.22% of First Merchants worth $28,787,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in FRME. Westend Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in First Merchants during the 1st quarter worth approximately $46,000. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. boosted its stake in shares of First Merchants by 314.5% in the 1st quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 1,318 shares of the bank's stock worth $53,000 after buying an additional 1,000 shares during the last quarter. Spectrum Wealth Counsel LLC purchased a new position in shares of First Merchants in the 1st quarter worth approximately $56,000. Sterling Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of First Merchants by 809.9% in the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 1,838 shares of the bank's stock worth $73,000 after buying an additional 1,636 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CWM LLC boosted its stake in shares of First Merchants by 44.2% in the 1st quarter. CWM LLC now owns 4,669 shares of the bank's stock worth $189,000 after buying an additional 1,432 shares during the last quarter. 73.92% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

First Merchants Stock Performance

First Merchants stock traded down $0.69 during trading on Monday, hitting $41.05. The stock had a trading volume of 238,651 shares, compared to its average volume of 232,851. First Merchants Corporation has a 1 year low of $33.13 and a 1 year 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 stock's 50 day moving average is $39.15 and its two-hundred day moving average is $39.03. The stock has a market cap of $2.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.63 and a beta of 1.08.

First Merchants (NASDAQ:FRME - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 23rd. The bank reported $0.98 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.94 by $0.04. First Merchants had a return on equity of 9.88% and a net margin of 21.35%.The business had revenue of $170.52 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $172.13 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.68 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that First Merchants Corporation will post 3.79 EPS for the current year.

First Merchants Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 19th. Investors of record on Friday, September 5th will be paid a $0.36 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 5th. This represents a $1.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.5%. First Merchants's dividend payout ratio is presently 37.31%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

About First Merchants

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.