Ensign Peak Advisors Inc Sells 5,600 Shares of First Merchants Corporation $FRME

Ensign Peak Advisors Inc reduced its stake in shares of First Merchants Corporation (NASDAQ:FRME) by 18.3% in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 24,920 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 5,600 shares during the period. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc’s holdings in First Merchants were worth $954,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in FRME. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its stake in First Merchants by 98.4% during 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 during the last quarter. Vident Advisory LLC purchased a new position in shares of First Merchants during the 1st quarter valued at about $223,000. CWM LLC lifted its position in First Merchants by 30.0% in the 2nd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 6,070 shares of the bank’s stock worth $232,000 after buying an additional 1,401 shares during the last quarter. MQS Management LLC bought a new stake in First Merchants in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $235,000. Finally, Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC purchased a new stake in First Merchants in the second quarter worth approximately $261,000. Institutional investors own 73.92% of the company’s stock.

First Merchants Price Performance

Shares of First Merchants stock opened at $36.81 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $2.13 billion, a PE ratio of 9.20 and a beta of 1.10. First Merchants Corporation has a 12-month low of $33.13 and a 12-month high of $45.62. 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 company’s fifty day simple moving average is $36.83 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $38.31.

First Merchants (NASDAQ:FRME) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 22nd. The bank reported $0.99 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.96 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $172.35 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $172.78 million. First Merchants had a net margin of 22.04% and a return on equity of 9.91%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.84 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that First Merchants Corporation will post 3.79 EPS for the current year.

First Merchants Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 19th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 5th will be issued a $0.36 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 5th. This represents a $1.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.9%. First Merchants’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.00%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have commented on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on shares of First Merchants from $49.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, September 26th. Raymond James Financial cut shares of First Merchants from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, September 26th. Stephens reissued an “equal weight” rating and issued a $46.00 price target on shares of First Merchants in a research note on Monday, September 29th. Piper Sandler reduced their price objective on First Merchants from $48.00 to $46.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, October 27th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised First Merchants from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 28th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $47.60.

First Merchants 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.