First Merchants (NASDAQ:FRME) Shares Gap Down – Should You Sell?

First Merchants Co. (NASDAQ:FRME)’s share price gapped down before the market opened on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $37.36, but opened at $36.25. First Merchants shares last traded at $35.78, with a volume of 13,505 shares traded.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have issued reports on FRME shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $45.00 target price on shares of First Merchants in a report on Wednesday, August 28th. Hovde Group assumed coverage on shares of First Merchants in a research report on Monday, August 12th. They set a “market perform” rating and a $38.00 price objective for the company. Piper Sandler boosted their target price on shares of First Merchants from $41.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, July 29th. Finally, Stephens downgraded shares of First Merchants from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and cut their price target for the stock from $45.00 to $38.00 in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, First Merchants currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $42.20.

First Merchants Trading Down 0.7 %

The company has a market cap of $2.09 billion, a PE ratio of 10.30 and a beta of 1.02. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $37.22 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $35.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 0.87 and a quick ratio of 0.86.

First Merchants (NASDAQ:FRME) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The bank reported $0.95 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.90 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $265.95 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $160.55 million. First Merchants had a net margin of 17.77% and a return on equity of 9.17%. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.94 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that First Merchants Co. will post 3.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

First Merchants Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 20th. Investors of record on Friday, September 6th were issued a $0.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 6th. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.92%. First Merchants’s dividend payout ratio is presently 40.35%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On First Merchants

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of FRME. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL purchased a new stake in First Merchants during the second quarter worth about $34,000. Quest Partners LLC purchased a new stake in First Merchants during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $45,000. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its holdings in First Merchants by 78.9% during the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,893 shares of the bank’s stock worth $70,000 after buying an additional 835 shares in the last quarter. CWM LLC lifted its holdings in First Merchants by 511.5% during the 2nd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,920 shares of the bank’s stock worth $64,000 after buying an additional 1,606 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Innealta Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of First Merchants in the second quarter worth $79,000. 73.92% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.