First Merchants Corporation (NASDAQ:FRME) Receives $47.75 Consensus Price Target from Brokerages

01 Mar 2026, 06:07 by Danessa Lincoln · The Markets Daily

First Merchants Corporation (NASDAQ:FRME – Get Free Report) has been assigned an average rating of “Hold” from the six analysts that are covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and two have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12 month price target among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $47.75.

Several brokerages recently issued reports on FRME. Zacks Research downgraded shares of First Merchants from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, December 1st. Piper Sandler increased their price target on First Merchants from $46.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of First Merchants in a report on Monday, December 29th.

Check Out Our Latest Analysis on First Merchants

First Merchants Stock Down 4.8%

Shares of NASDAQ:FRME opened at $39.08 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. The company has a market capitalization of $2.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.05 and a beta of 0.94. First Merchants has a 52-week low of $33.13 and a 52-week high of $44.33. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $39.55 and its 200-day simple moving average is $38.62.

First Merchants (NASDAQ:FRME – Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Monday, January 26th. The bank reported $0.98 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.96 by $0.02. First Merchants had a net margin of 21.49% and a return on equity of 9.68%. The firm had revenue of $178.36 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $172.89 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.10 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that First Merchants will post 3.79 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

First Merchants Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 6th will be issued a $0.36 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 6th. This represents a $1.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.7%. First Merchants’s payout ratio is 37.02%.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Larry W. Myers sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $41.50, for a total value of $207,500.00. Following the transaction, the vice president directly owned 109,491 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,543,876.50. This trade represents a 4.37% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Eva D. Scurlock sold 3,227 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.29, for a total value of $136,469.83. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 20,063 shares in the company, valued at approximately $848,464.27. This trade represents a 13.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Corporate insiders own 1.37% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On First Merchants

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in FRME. Waterfront Wealth Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of First Merchants by 1.0% during the 2nd quarter. Waterfront Wealth Inc. now owns 27,412 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,050,000 after acquiring an additional 272 shares in the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP raised its position in First Merchants by 9.9% in the third quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 3,100 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $117,000 after purchasing an additional 279 shares during the period. EJF Capital LLC lifted its stake in shares of First Merchants by 2.6% during the second quarter. EJF Capital LLC now owns 11,884 shares of the bank’s stock worth $455,000 after purchasing an additional 303 shares in the last quarter. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC boosted its position in shares of First Merchants by 1.3% in the fourth quarter. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC now owns 25,264 shares of the bank’s stock worth $962,000 after buying an additional 335 shares during the period. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in shares of First Merchants by 62.1% in the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 987 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $37,000 after buying an additional 378 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 73.92% of the company’s stock.

First Merchants Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

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.