Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd Has $3.25 Million Stake in First Merchants Corporation $FRME

Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd raised its position in First Merchants Corporation (NASDAQ:FRME) by 892.3% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 84,049 shares of the bank’s stock after buying an additional 75,579 shares during the period. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd owned about 0.13% of First Merchants worth $3,255,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in First Merchants by 361.7% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 771 shares of the bank’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 604 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of First Merchants by 325.7% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 796 shares of the bank’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 609 shares in the last quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. acquired a new position in First Merchants in the 4th quarter valued at $37,000. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in First Merchants by 62.1% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 987 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 378 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Covestor Ltd lifted its holdings in First Merchants by 68.9% in the 4th quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,042 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 425 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 73.92% of the company’s stock.

First Merchants Trading Down 0.0%

NASDAQ:FRME traded down $0.01 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $43.41. The company had a trading volume of 40,147 shares, compared to its average volume of 391,317. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a current ratio of 0.94. First Merchants Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $34.66 and a fifty-two week high of $44.59. The firm has a market cap of $2.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.77 and a beta of 0.84. The business’s fifty day moving average is $40.91 and its two-hundred day moving average is $39.81.

First Merchants (NASDAQ:FRME) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The bank reported $1.03 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.96 by $0.07. First Merchants had a net margin of 18.87% and a return on equity of 9.58%. The firm had revenue of $163.53 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $201.91 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.00 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that First Merchants Corporation will post 4.29 earnings per share for the current year.

First Merchants Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 19th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 5th were issued a dividend of $0.37 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 5th. This is a positive change from First Merchants’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.36. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.4%. First Merchants’s dividend payout ratio is currently 43.53%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

Insider Buying and Selling at First Merchants

In other news, Director Larry W. Myers sold 10,000 shares of First Merchants stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.50, for a total transaction of $415,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 99,751 shares in the company, valued at $4,139,666.50. This trade represents a 9.11% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 1.77% of the company’s stock.

About First Merchants

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.