First Merchants Corp (NASDAQ: FRME) has a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.42x that is above its average ratio. Additionally, the 36-month beta value for FRME is 1.04. There are mixed opinions on the stock, with 2 analysts rating it as a “buy,” 3 rating it as “overweight,” 1 rating it as “hold,” and 0 rating it as “sell.”
The public float for FRME is 57.63M and currently, short sellers hold a 1.07% ratio of that float. The average trading volume of FRME on April 18, 2025 was 295.09K shares.
FRME) stock’s latest price update
First Merchants Corp (NASDAQ: FRME)’s stock price has plunge by 0.20relation to previous closing price of 35.46. Nevertheless, the company has seen a 2.60% surge in its stock price over the last five trading sessions. zacks.com reported 2025-04-17 that First Merchants (FRME) doesn’t possess the right combination of the two key ingredients for a likely earnings beat in its upcoming report. Get prepared with the key expectations.
FRME’s Market Performance
FRME’s stock has risen by 2.60% in the past week, with a monthly drop of -12.98% and a quarterly drop of -11.06%. The volatility ratio for the week is 3.05% while the volatility levels for the last 30 days are 4.05% for First Merchants Corp The simple moving average for the last 20 days is -5.88% for FRME stock, with a simple moving average of -9.98% for the last 200 days.
Analysts’ Opinion of FRME
Many brokerage firms have already submitted their reports for FRME stocks, with Hovde Group repeating the rating for FRME by listing it as a “Outperform.” The predicted price for FRME in the upcoming period, according to Hovde Group is $50 based on the research report published on January 31, 2025 of the current year 2025.
Hovde Group, on the other hand, stated in their research note that they expect to see FRME reach a price target of $38, previously predicting the price at $35. The rating they have provided for FRME stocks is “Market Perform” according to the report published on August 12th, 2024.
Stephens gave a rating of “Equal-Weight” to FRME, setting the target price at $38 in the report published on August 07th of the previous year.
FRME Trading at -12.55% from the 50-Day Moving Average
After a stumble in the market that brought FRME to its low price for the period of the last 52 weeks, the company was unable to rebound, for now settling with -22.98% of loss for the given period.
Volatility was left at 4.05%, however, over the last 30 days, the volatility rate increased by 3.05%, as shares sank -13.04% for the moving average over the last 20 days. Over the last 50 days, in opposition, the stock is trading -20.53% lower at present.
During the last 5 trading sessions, FRME rose by +2.60%, which changed the moving average for the period of 200-days by +8.32% in comparison to the 20-day moving average, which settled at $37.75. In addition, First Merchants Corp saw -10.93% in overturn over a single year, with a tendency to cut further losses.
Insider Trading
Reports are indicating that there were more than several insider trading activities at FRME starting from Halderman Howard, who purchase 4 shares at the price of $41.24 back on Dec 30 ’24. After this action, Halderman Howard now owns 25,131 shares of First Merchants Corp, valued at $165 using the latest closing price.
Stewart Michael J, the President of First Merchants Corp, sale 7,248 shares at $43.73 during a trade that took place back on Dec 16 ’24, which means that Stewart Michael J is holding 92,664 shares at $316,955 based on the most recent closing price.
Stock Fundamentals for FRME
Current profitability levels for the company are sitting at:
- 0.2 for the present operating margin
- 1.0 for the gross margin
The net margin for First Merchants Corp stands at 0.24. The total capital return value is set at 0.01. Equity return is now at value 8.85, with 1.10 for asset returns.
Based on First Merchants Corp (FRME), the company’s capital structure generated 0.28 points at debt to capital in total, while cash flow to debt ratio is standing at 0.29. The debt to equity ratio resting at 0.4. The interest coverage ratio of the stock is 0.52.
When we switch over and look at the enterprise to sales, we see a ratio of 3.1. The receivables turnover for the company is 9.17for trailing twelve months and the total asset turnover is 0.05. The liquidity ratio also appears to be rather interesting for investors as it stands at 0.06.
Conclusion
In conclusion, First Merchants Corp (FRME) has seen mixed performance in recent times. Analysts have a bullish opinion on the stock, with some rating it as a “buy” and others rating it as a “hold”. It’s important to note that the stock is currently trading at a significant distance from its 50-day moving average and its 52-week high.
