Empowered Funds LLC Has $8.86 Million Stake in First Merchants Co. (NASDAQ:FRME)

Empowered Funds LLC increased its stake in shares of First Merchants Co. (NASDAQ:FRME) by 5.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 222,066 shares of the bank’s stock after purchasing an additional 10,934 shares during the quarter. Empowered Funds LLC owned approximately 0.38% of First Merchants worth $8,858,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its stake in shares of First Merchants by 67.9% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 134,136 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $5,368,000 after buying an additional 54,265 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its position in First Merchants by 1.3% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 886,088 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $32,962,000 after purchasing an additional 11,521 shares during the last quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd grew its stake in First Merchants by 123.8% in the third quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd now owns 24,174 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $899,000 after purchasing an additional 13,370 shares in the last quarter. Sentinel Pension Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in First Merchants in the 4th quarter worth about $607,000. Finally, US Bancorp DE raised its stake in shares of First Merchants by 10.6% during the 3rd quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 17,072 shares of the bank’s stock worth $635,000 after purchasing an additional 1,637 shares in the last quarter. 73.92% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

First Merchants Trading Down 1.3 %

NASDAQ:FRME opened at $44.67 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. The company’s 50 day moving average is $41.41 and its 200-day moving average is $39.54. The firm has a market cap of $2.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.06 and a beta of 1.07. First Merchants Co. has a 12 month low of $30.55 and a 12 month high of $46.13.

First Merchants (NASDAQ:FRME) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The bank reported $1.00 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.90 by $0.10. First Merchants had a net margin of 18.76% and a return on equity of 9.23%. Equities analysts anticipate that First Merchants Co. will post 3.71 EPS for the current year.

First Merchants Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 21st. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th will be paid a dividend of $0.35 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 6th. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.13%. First Merchants’s payout ratio is 40.94%.

Insider Buying and Selling at First Merchants

In other news, President Michael J. Stewart sold 7,248 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the president now directly owns 92,664 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,052,196.72. This represents a 7.25 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 1.32% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently commented on FRME shares. Hovde Group raised First Merchants from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $50.00 price target for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and set a $55.00 price target (up previously from $52.00) on shares of First Merchants in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on shares of First Merchants from $50.00 to $52.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Raymond James reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $50.00 price objective (up from $42.00) on shares of First Merchants in a report on Friday, January 31st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $49.00.

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.