First Merchants (NASDAQ:FRME) Hits New 52-Week High – Time to Buy?

First Merchants Corporation (NASDAQ:FRME)’s stock price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $44.67 and last traded at $44.9470, with a volume of 30298 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $43.75.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently commented on the stock. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of First Merchants from a “buy (b)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Monday, May 18th. Wall Street Zen raised First Merchants from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, May 17th. Finally, Piper Sandler raised their price target on First Merchants from $49.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, June 26th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $49.00.

First Merchants Trading Up 3.2%

The firm has a market capitalization of $2.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.29 and a beta of 0.84. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $41.29 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $40.03. The company has a current ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52.

First Merchants (NASDAQ:FRME) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The bank reported $1.03 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.96 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $163.53 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $201.91 million. First Merchants had a net margin of 18.87% and a return on equity of 9.58%. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.00 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that First Merchants Corporation will post 4.26 earnings per share for the current year.

First Merchants Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 19th. Investors of record on Friday, June 5th were given a $0.37 dividend. This is an increase from First Merchants’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.36. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.3%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 5th. First Merchants’s payout ratio is currently 43.53%.

Insider Buying and Selling at First Merchants

In other news, Director Larry W. Myers sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.50, for a total value of $415,000.00. Following the sale, the director owned 99,751 shares in the company, valued at $4,139,666.50. This represents a 9.11% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 1.77% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of First Merchants by 361.7% during the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 771 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 604 shares in the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of First Merchants by 325.7% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 796 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 609 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in First Merchants by 62.1% during the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 987 shares of the bank’s stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 378 shares during the last quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. purchased a new position in First Merchants in the 4th quarter worth approximately $37,000. Finally, Covestor Ltd boosted its stake in First Merchants by 68.9% during the fourth quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,042 shares of the bank’s stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 425 shares during the last quarter. 73.92% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

First Merchants Company Profile

First Merchants Corporation, through its subsidiary First Merchants Bank, offers a comprehensive suite of banking and financial services to individuals, businesses and public sector clients. The company’s core business activities include retail and commercial banking, lending, treasury and cash management, and wealth advisory services. With a focus on relationship banking, First Merchants seeks to deliver tailored solutions for deposit accounts, loan financing and other credit products.

On the consumer side, First Merchants provides checking and savings accounts, certificates of deposit, personal and mortgage loans, and electronic banking conveniences.