Cetera Investment Advisers Sells 1,002 Shares of First Merchants Corporation $FRME

Cetera Investment Advisers cut its position in First Merchants Corporation (NASDAQ:FRME) by 13.1% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 6,643 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 1,002 shares during the quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers’ holdings in First Merchants were worth $269,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Westend Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in First Merchants in the 1st quarter valued at $46,000. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. boosted its stake in First Merchants by 314.5% in the 1st quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 1,318 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $53,000 after purchasing an additional 1,000 shares during the period. Sterling Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in First Merchants by 809.9% in the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 1,838 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $73,000 after purchasing an additional 1,636 shares during the period. CWM LLC boosted its stake in First Merchants by 44.2% in the 1st quarter. CWM LLC now owns 4,669 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $189,000 after purchasing an additional 1,432 shares during the period. Finally, New York State Teachers Retirement System bought a new stake in First Merchants in the 1st quarter valued at $216,000. 73.92% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

First Merchants Price Performance

Shares of FRME opened at $39.50 on Thursday. First Merchants Corporation has a 12-month low of $33.13 and a 12-month high of $46.13. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $38.88 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $39.18. The company has a quick ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. The stock has a market cap of $2.28 billion, a PE ratio of 10.23 and a beta of 1.08.

First Merchants (NASDAQ:FRME) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The bank reported $0.98 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.94 by $0.04. First Merchants had a return on equity of 9.88% and a net margin of 21.35%.The business had revenue of $170.52 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $172.13 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.68 EPS. Analysts anticipate that First Merchants Corporation will post 3.79 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

First Merchants Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 19th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 5th will be issued a $0.36 dividend. This represents a $1.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 5th. First Merchants’s dividend payout ratio is presently 37.31%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have weighed in on FRME shares. Piper Sandler dropped their price objective on First Merchants from $49.00 to $48.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, July 28th. Wall Street Zen raised First Merchants from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, May 24th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price objective on First Merchants from $52.00 to $49.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 25th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $48.25.

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.