First Merchants Corporation
- Open
- 44.59
- Day high
- 44.59
- Day low
- 44.02
- Prev close
- 44.59
- Volume
- 425K
- Mkt cap
- $2.8B
- P/E (TTM)
- 13.0
- EPS (TTM)
- $3.41
- P/B
- 1.0
- P/S
- 2.7
- Yield
- 3.27%
- Per share
- $1.45
- ▼Insiders net selling -$415K over the last 3 months (0 open-market buys, 2 sales)
- 🏛Institutions accumulating (13F)
First Merchants Corporation (FRME) is a Financial Services company listed on NASDAQ. The stock is up 8% over the past year. Over the trailing 3 months, insiders filed 0 open-market buys and 2 sales (SEC Form 4).
First Merchants Corporation (FRME) financials & analyst ratings
Fundamentals (TTM)
Source: exchange market data + company filings. Figures are trailing-twelve-month or as most recently reported. For informational purposes only — not investment advice.
FRME earnings date, history & EPS estimates
| Report date | EPS est | EPS actual | Surprise | Revenue | Rev. surprise |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 23, 2026 | $0.96 | $1.03 | +7.3% | $193M | +2.6% |
| Jan 26, 2026 | $0.96 | $0.98 | +2.1% | $171M | -8.3% |
| Oct 22, 2025 | $0.96 | $0.99 | +2.9% | $166M | -3.7% |
| Jul 23, 2025 | $0.94 | $0.98 | +4.3% | $164M | -4.9% |
| Apr 24, 2025 | $0.91 | $0.94 | +3.3% | $160M | -6.2% |
| Jan 30, 2025 | $0.90 | $1.00 | +11.1% | $157M | -5.9% |
| Oct 24, 2024 | $0.90 | $0.84 | -6.7% | $156M | -6.2% |
| Jul 25, 2024 | $0.80 | $0.68 | -15.0% | $160M | -0.4% |
| Apr 25, 2024 | $0.82 | $0.85 | +3.7% | $154M | -5.5% |
| Jan 25, 2024 | $0.87 | $0.87 | +0.0% | $157M | -5.4% |
| Oct 26, 2023 | $0.94 | $0.95 | +1.1% | $161M | -3.5% |
| Jul 25, 2023 | $1.02 | $1.02 | +0.0% | $164M | -5.1% |
FRME insider trading activity (SEC Form 4)
| Date | Insider | Type | Shares | Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 2, 2026 | Fultz Paul Gdirector | Grant | 518 | $43.69 |
| Jul 2, 2026 | FISHER MICHAEL Jdirector | Grant | 500 | $43.69 |
| Jul 2, 2026 | Becher Michael Rdirector | Grant | 554 | $43.69 |
| Jul 2, 2026 | Myers Larry Wdirector | Grant | 518 | $43.69 |
| Jul 2, 2026 | KELLOGG CLARK Cdirector | Grant | 518 | $43.69 |
| Jul 2, 2026 | Chiang Mungdirector | Grant | 500 | $43.69 |
| Jul 2, 2026 | Halderman Howarddirector | Grant | 536 | $43.69 |
| Jul 2, 2026 | Sondhi Jason Rdirector | Grant | 536 | $43.69 |
| Jul 2, 2026 | RECHIN MICHAEL Cdirector | Grant | 554 | $43.69 |
| Jul 2, 2026 | Brooks Susan Wdirector | Grant | 518 | $43.69 |
| Jul 2, 2026 | WOJTOWICZ JEAN Ldirector | Grant | 715 | $43.69 |
| Jul 2, 2026 | Johnson Kevin Ddirector | Grant | 500 | $43.69 |
| Jun 23, 2026 | HARDWICK MARK Kdirector, officer: Chief Executive Officer | Grant | 31 | — |
| Jun 23, 2026 | FLUHLER STEPHANofficer, other: Chief Information Officer | Grant | 96 | — |
| Jun 15, 2026 | Myers Larry Wdirector | Sell | 10,000 | $41.50 |
Source: FRME SEC Form 4 filings, latest Jul 2, 2026. For informational purposes only — not investment advice.
See the full FRME insider & 13F page →First Merchants Corporation company profile
Overview
First Merchants Corporation (NASDAQ:FRME) is a regional banking holding company founded in 1893 and headquartered in Muncie, Indiana. The company operates through its primary subsidiary, First Merchants Bank, which provides community banking services across the Midwest. With over 130 years of banking history, First Merchants has grown through both organic expansion and strategic acquisitions to become a significant regional player with $18.4 billion in total assets as of 2025. The bank operates 109 banking locations across Indiana, Illinois, Ohio, and Michigan, serving both commercial and consumer customers through traditional branch networks and digital banking platforms.
Business
First Merchants Corporation operates in the regional banking industry, providing traditional community banking services to customers across the Midwest. Regional banks like First Merchants serve as financial intermediaries, taking deposits from customers and lending those funds to borrowers while earning a spread between the interest paid on deposits and the interest earned on loans. The company's core business segments include: 1. Commercial Banking (approximately 75% of loan portfolio): This segment provides lending services to businesses, including commercial and industrial (C&I) loans for working capital and equipment financing, commercial real estate loans for property purchases and development, and investment real estate financing. The C&I portfolio alone represents about 50% of total loans and has been a key growth driver. 2. Consumer Banking (approximately 25% of loan portfolio): This includes residential mortgage loans, home equity lines of credit, personal loans, and other consumer lending products. The bank maintains a consumer mortgage portfolio on its balance sheet while also originating mortgages for sale in the secondary market. 3. Wealth Management and Trust Services: First Merchants manages approximately $5.6 billion in assets under advisement, providing investment management, trust services, and financial planning to high-net-worth individuals and businesses. 4. Treasury Management: The bank offers cash management services, merchant services, and other fee-based products to commercial clients. The bank's geographic footprint is concentrated in Indiana (its primary market), Ohio, Michigan, and Illinois, with recent strategic focus on divesting non-core Illinois branches to concentrate on the Indiana-Ohio-Michigan corridor where it sees the greatest growth opportunities.
Revenue model
First Merchants generates revenue through the traditional banking model of net interest income and fee-based services. The primary revenue driver is the net interest margin - the difference between interest earned on loans and investments versus interest paid on deposits and borrowed funds. With a net interest margin of approximately 3.22%, the bank earns money by lending deposits at higher rates than it pays depositors. The bank's customers include small to medium-sized businesses, agricultural operations, real estate developers, and individual consumers. Commercial clients typically generate higher margins and fee income through treasury management services, while consumer customers provide stable deposit funding and mortgage origination fees. Several factors influence First Merchants' profitability margins: Positive margin factors include rising interest rates (which historically benefit banks with more variable-rate assets than liabilities), strong loan demand in growing Midwest markets, disciplined deposit pricing, and growing fee income from wealth management and treasury services. The bank's focus on commercial lending typically provides higher yields than consumer loans. Negative margin factors include deposit competition forcing higher funding costs, potential credit losses during economic downturns, regulatory compliance costs, and the need for continued technology investments to compete with larger banks and fintech companies. Interest rate cuts can compress margins if deposit costs don't fall as quickly as loan yields. The bank has demonstrated pricing discipline, actively managing deposit costs while growing its commercial loan portfolio at attractive yields. Fee income from wealth management, treasury services, and mortgage banking provides some revenue diversification beyond pure interest rate spread.
Competitive moat
First Merchants possesses a modest but meaningful competitive moat built primarily around local market relationships and regulatory barriers to entry. As a community-focused regional bank, its competitive advantages include deep relationships with local businesses and individuals built over decades of operation, intimate knowledge of local market conditions and creditworthy borrowers, and the ability to make lending decisions quickly compared to larger national banks. The banking industry benefits from significant regulatory barriers to entry - starting a new bank requires substantial capital, regulatory approval, and years of preparation. This creates a natural oligopoly in most local markets. First Merchants also benefits from customer switching costs, as businesses and individuals typically maintain long-term banking relationships due to the complexity of moving accounts, credit facilities, and treasury management services. However, the bank's moat faces several challenges. Technology disruption from fintech companies and digital-first banks threatens traditional relationship banking, particularly for younger customers and standardized financial products. Larger national banks have superior technology resources and can offer more competitive pricing on deposits and loans. Geographic concentration in the Midwest creates vulnerability to regional economic downturns, particularly in manufacturing and agriculture. The bank's recent investments in digital platforms and technology upgrades represent attempts to strengthen its competitive position, but these are largely defensive moves to maintain parity rather than create sustainable advantages. The wealth management business provides some differentiation and higher-margin revenue, but this segment faces intense competition from specialized firms and larger institutions. Overall, First Merchants operates in a competitively challenged industry where sustainable competitive advantages are difficult to maintain long-term, though local market presence provides some near-term protection.
Risks & safety
First Merchants demonstrates moderate financial safety with adequate capitalization but typical regional bank vulnerabilities. Capital and Solvency: - Common Equity Tier One Ratio: 11.5% (well above regulatory minimums) - Tangible Common Equity: 8.9% (reasonable buffer) - Total Assets: $18.4 billion with $2.3 billion in shareholder equity - No significant debt-to-equity concerns for a bank structure Liquidity Position: - Cash and short-term investments: $417 million - Strong deposit base of $14+ billion providing stable funding - Positive operating cash flow: $61.7 million in Q1 2025 Credit Quality Metrics: - Allowance for Credit Losses: 1.47% of total loans ($192 million) - Non-performing assets: $91.2 million - Classified loans: 2.78% of portfolio (elevated but manageable) Valuation Metrics: - Price-to-earnings ratio: 10.6x (reasonable for regional banks) - Price-to-book ratio: 1.0x (trading near tangible book value) - Return on equity: 2.4% (quarterly, indicating moderate profitability) Other Considerations: - Interest rate sensitivity creates earnings volatility - Geographic concentration in Midwest industrial economy - Regulatory capital requirements limit financial flexibility
Recent development
Over the past few years, First Merchants has executed several strategic initiatives focused on technology modernization and market consolidation. The bank completed four major technology upgrades including implementing the Terafina in-branch account opening platform (reducing account opening time from 45 to 10 minutes), deploying Q2 online and mobile banking platforms, and upgrading private wealth management technology systems. The company has pursued geographic focus by divesting non-core assets, selling five Illinois branches in late 2024 to concentrate resources on core markets in Indiana, Ohio, and Michigan. This strategic repositioning reflects management's belief that these three states offer the best growth opportunities and operational synergies. Balance sheet growth has been steady, with total loans growing approximately 6% annually, driven primarily by commercial and industrial lending. The bank has maintained disciplined underwriting while expanding its commercial banking relationships, particularly in manufacturing and middle-market companies. Recent initiatives include launching enhanced treasury management services that generated over 10% fee income growth, expanding the private wealth management platform across all markets, and implementing a voluntary early retirement program to manage expenses while investing in technology. The bank has also been active in capital management, approving a $100 million share repurchase program and maintaining dividend payments while targeting mid-to-high single-digit loan growth. Management has expressed interest in potential acquisitions within their core three-state footprint, though they remain focused on organic growth and technology integration in the near term.
FRME company profile · for informational purposes only — not investment advice.
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