First Merchants (NASDAQ:FRME) Price Target Lowered to $48.00 at Piper Sandler

Key Points

• Piper Sandler has reduced the price target for First Merchants (NASDAQ:FRME) from $49.00 to $48.00, maintaining an "overweight" rating with a potential upside of 19.84% from the last closing price.
• Other analysts have also revised their ratings, with Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowering their target to $49.00 and Raymond James reducing it to $46.00.
• Currently, a total of 73.92% of First Merchants' stock is held by institutional investors and hedge funds, indicating strong investor interest in the company.

First Merchants (NASDAQ:FRME - Get Free Report) had its price objective cut by equities researchers at Piper Sandler from $49.00 to $48.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Monday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an "overweight" rating on the bank's stock. Piper Sandler's price objective would indicate a potential upside of 25.92% from the company's previous close.

FRME has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their target price on First Merchants from $52.00 to $49.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 25th. Wall Street Zen upgraded First Merchants from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, May 24th. Finally, Raymond James Financial decreased their target price on First Merchants from $50.00 to $46.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $46.20.

First Merchants Trading Down 1.4%

FRME stock traded down $0.54 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $38.12. The company had a trading volume of 273,390 shares, compared to its average volume of 294,908. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45. First Merchants has a 52 week low of $33.13 and a 52 week high of $46.13. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $38.62 and its 200 day moving average price is $39.44. The stock has a market cap of $2.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.88 and a beta of 1.02.

First Merchants (NASDAQ:FRME - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 23rd. The bank reported $0.98 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.94 by $0.04. First Merchants had a return on equity of 9.91% and a net margin of 21.35%. The firm had revenue of $170.52 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $172.13 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.68 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts expect that First Merchants will post 3.79 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On First Merchants

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in FRME. Federated Hermes Inc. bought a new position in First Merchants in the fourth quarter worth $37,000. Westend Capital Management LLC bought a new position in First Merchants in the first quarter worth $46,000. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. raised its holdings in 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 worth $53,000 after purchasing an additional 1,000 shares in the last quarter. Spectrum Wealth Counsel LLC bought a new position in First Merchants in the first quarter worth $56,000. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. raised its holdings in First Merchants by 98.4% in the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,784 shares of the bank's stock worth $68,000 after purchasing an additional 885 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 73.92% of the company's stock.

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.