First Merchants (NASDAQ:FRME) Sets New 12-Month Low - Here's What Happened

First Merchants Co. (NASDAQ:FRME - Get Free Report) reached a new 52-week low during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $34.85 and last traded at $35.64, with a volume of 362302 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $35.91.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

FRME has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Raymond James dropped their price objective on shares of First Merchants from $50.00 to $46.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Hovde Group raised shares of First Merchants from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $50.00 price target for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their target price on First Merchants from $52.00 to $49.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 25th. Finally, Piper Sandler dropped their price objective on First Merchants from $55.00 to $49.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $46.40.

First Merchants Trading Down 0.1 %

The firm has a market cap of $2.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.80 and a beta of 0.95. The company has a quick ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. The business's fifty day moving average is $38.37 and its two-hundred day moving average is $40.50.

First Merchants (NASDAQ:FRME - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The bank reported $0.94 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.91 by $0.03. First Merchants had a return on equity of 9.23% and a net margin of 18.76%. The business had revenue of $160.32 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $171.23 million. Equities analysts anticipate that First Merchants Co. will post 3.79 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, March 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 7th were issued a dividend of $0.35 per share. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.79%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 7th. First Merchants's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 39.33%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On First Merchants

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Barclays PLC grew its stake in First Merchants by 8.6% during the fourth quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 121,969 shares of the bank's stock worth $4,866,000 after purchasing an additional 9,679 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB raised its stake in First Merchants by 67.9% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 134,136 shares of the bank's stock worth $5,368,000 after buying an additional 54,265 shares during the period. Sentinel Pension Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in First Merchants in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $607,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its holdings in shares of First Merchants by 55.5% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 930,896 shares of the bank's stock valued at $37,133,000 after acquiring an additional 332,168 shares in the last quarter. Finally, KBC Group NV grew its position in First Merchants by 27.9% in the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 3,052 shares of the bank's stock valued at $122,000 after purchasing an additional 665 shares during the period. 73.92% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.