Sapient Capital LLC Takes $369,000 Position in First Merchants Co. (NASDAQ:FRME)

Sapient Capital LLC bought a new position in First Merchants Co. (NASDAQ:FRME) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm bought 9,952 shares of the bank’s stock, valued at approximately $369,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. International Assets Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of First Merchants in the fourth quarter worth approximately $29,000. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust boosted its holdings in First Merchants by 27.6% in the 4th quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 1,524 shares of the bank’s stock worth $57,000 after buying an additional 330 shares during the period. Meeder Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in First Merchants in the 4th quarter worth $75,000. Assetmark Inc. increased its stake in First Merchants by 16.0% in the 3rd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 2,806 shares of the bank’s stock worth $78,000 after buying an additional 387 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in First Merchants during the third quarter valued at about $81,000. 73.92% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently issued reports on FRME. Piper Sandler increased their target price on First Merchants from $41.00 to $42.50 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, April 29th. Raymond James increased their price objective on shares of First Merchants from $33.00 to $40.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, January 29th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of First Merchants from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, May 2nd.

Insider Activity at First Merchants

In other First Merchants news, insider Stephan Fluhler sold 3,193 shares of First Merchants stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $33.17, for a total value of $105,911.81. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 24,070 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $798,401.90. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

First Merchants Price Performance

NASDAQ:FRME opened at $34.98 on Tuesday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $33.80 and its 200 day moving average is $33.41. First Merchants Co. has a 12 month low of $24.52 and a 12 month high of $38.16. The company has a market capitalization of $2.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.08 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33.

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.