First Merchants' (FRME) "Outperform" Rating Reiterated at Raymond James

Raymond James restated their outperform rating on shares of First Merchants (NASDAQ:FRME - Free Report) in a research note published on Friday,Benzinga reports. Raymond James currently has a $50.00 price objective on the bank's stock, up from their previous price objective of $42.00.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently issued reports on the company. Hovde Group upgraded First Merchants from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $50.00 target price for the company in a report on Friday. Piper Sandler reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $55.00 price objective (up from $52.00) on shares of First Merchants in a report on Friday. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on First Merchants from $43.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $49.00.

First Merchants Trading Up 0.6 %

Shares of First Merchants stock traded up $0.25 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $44.35. The company's stock had a trading volume of 261,923 shares, compared to its average volume of 244,228. The company has a market capitalization of $2.60 billion, a PE ratio of 12.97 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 0.90 and a quick ratio of 0.89. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $41.37 and a 200 day moving average of $39.36. First Merchants has a 12 month low of $30.55 and a 12 month high of $46.13.

First Merchants (NASDAQ:FRME - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The bank reported $1.00 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.90 by $0.10. First Merchants had a net margin of 18.76% and a return on equity of 9.23%. Analysts predict that First Merchants will post 3.71 earnings per share for the current year.

First Merchants Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 6th were paid a $0.35 dividend. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.16%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 6th. First Merchants's dividend payout ratio is currently 40.94%.

Insider Transactions at First Merchants

In related news, President Michael J. Stewart sold 7,248 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, December 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.73, for a total value of $316,955.04. Following the sale, the president now owns 92,664 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,052,196.72. This represents a 7.25 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 1.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On First Merchants

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of First Merchants by 108.3% during the 3rd quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 750 shares of the bank's stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 390 shares during the period. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC lifted its position in First Merchants by 139.1% during the fourth quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,289 shares of the bank's stock worth $51,000 after acquiring an additional 750 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of First Merchants by 78.9% during the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,893 shares of the bank's stock worth $70,000 after acquiring an additional 835 shares during the period. KBC Group NV acquired a new position in shares of First Merchants in the third quarter valued at approximately $89,000. Finally, Allworth Financial LP increased its stake in shares of First Merchants by 270.1% during the fourth quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 2,728 shares of the bank's stock worth $109,000 after purchasing an additional 1,991 shares during the period. 73.92% of the stock is currently 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.