FRME (First Merchants) Shareholder Yield % : 3.24% (As of Mar. 2026) — 86% Above Median


FRME First Merchants Corp FRME
61 GF Score
Price $43.68
GF Value $39.83
Valuation Fairly Valued
! 8 Warning Signs
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What is First Merchants Shareholder Yield %?

First Merchants FRME +0.71% 61 Shareholder Yield % is 3.24% as of Mar. 2026, which is 86% above its 10-year median of 1.74. GuruFocus rates FRME with a GF Score™ of 61/100 and a GF Value™ of $39.83 (Fairly Valued). The stock has 8 warning signs investors should review. Among 1,502 Banks companies, First Merchants ranks better than 57.66% on this metric.

Shareholder Yield % is how much money shareholders receive from a company that is in the form of cash dividends, net stock repurchases, and debt reduction. It is a measure of shareholder return. As of today, First Merchants's Shareholder Yield % was 3.24%.


First Merchants  (NAS:FRME) Shareholder Yield % Explanation

Shareholder Yield % is how much money shareholders receive from a company that is in the form of cash dividends, net stock repurchases, and debt reduction. The term was coined by William W. Priest of Epoch Investment Partners in a paper in 2005 entitled The Case for Shareholder Yield as a Dominant Driver of Future Equity Returns. William Priest indicated that "shareholder yield is a term that we came up with to reflect the various ways dividends can be paid to owners of a business in a publicly-traded company."

Shareholder Yield % is calculated by three components: Dividend Yield %, Buyback Yield %, and Net Debt Paydown Yield %.

Dividend Yield % shows how much a company pays out in dividends each year relative to its stock price, which is most obvious form of shareholder return.

Buyback Yield % is the net repurchase of shares outstanding over the market capital of the company. Shares repurchases also increase shareholder value by returning the money back to shareholders.

Net Debt Paydown Yield % is the change in average of four quarters of company's total debt over a company's market cap. Assuming the total value of a company remains that same, shareholder value is increased as debt is reduced.


First Merchants Shareholder Yield % Related Terms


First Merchants Shareholder Yield % Historical Data

* Premium members only.

The historical data trend for First Merchants's Shareholder Yield % can be seen below:

* For Operating Data section: All numbers are indicated by the unit behind each term and all currency related amount are in USD.
* For other sections: All numbers are in millions except for per share data, ratio, and percentage. All currency related amount are indicated in the company's associated stock exchange currency.

First Merchants Shareholder Yield % Chart

First Merchants Annual Data
Trend Dec16 Dec17 Dec18 Dec19 Dec20 Dec21 Dec22 Dec23 Dec24 Dec25
Shareholder Yield %
Get a 7-Day Free Trial Premium Member Only Premium Member Only 9.18 -8.47 -3.81 6.82 3.46

First Merchants Quarterly Data
Jun21 Sep21 Dec21 Mar22 Jun22 Sep22 Dec22 Mar23 Jun23 Sep23 Dec23 Mar24 Jun24 Sep24 Dec24 Mar25 Jun25 Sep25 Dec25 Mar26
Shareholder Yield % Get a 7-Day Free Trial Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only -0.03 0.24 2.01 3.46 3.62

FRME vs CUBI, TRMK, WAFD: Shareholder Yield % Comparison

For the Banks - Regional subindustry, First Merchants's Shareholder Yield %, along with its competitors' market caps and Shareholder Yield % data, can be viewed below:

* Competitive companies are chosen from companies within the same industry, with headquarter located in same country, with closest market capitalization; x-axis shows the market cap, and y-axis shows the term value; the bigger the dot, the larger the market cap. Note that "N/A" values will not show up in the chart.


First Merchants Shareholder Yield % vs Banks Industry

For the Banks industry and Financial Services sector, First Merchants's Shareholder Yield % distribution charts can be found below:

* The bar in red indicates where First Merchants's Shareholder Yield % falls into.


FRME
61GF Score
First Merchants Corp FRME
Shareholder Yield % is just one metric. See GF Score™, valuation, warning signs, and more.
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First Merchants Shareholder Yield % Calculation

First Merchants's Shareholder Yield % for the quarter that ended in Mar. 2026 is calculated as:

Shareholder Yield %=Dividend Yield %+Buyback Yield %+Net Debt Paydown Yield %
=3.72 %+2.54 %+-2.64 %
=3.62 %

* For Operating Data section: All numbers are indicated by the unit behind each term and all currency related amount are in USD.
* For other sections: All numbers are in millions except for per share data, ratio, and percentage. All currency related amount are indicated in the company's associated stock exchange currency.

* All the data are calculated by TTM values. Note that if a companies is traded in several exchanges, then we calculate the company level data for Shareholder Yield % using the primary share class stock data. The calculation result in definition page is for demonstration purpose only, and it's showing the share class level data. Therefore, the numbers in the calculation may differ from elsewhere if the stock is not a primary share.

Frequently Asked Questions Learn more about Shareholder Yield % →
What does a Shareholder Yield % of 3.24% mean?
First Merchants (FRME) has a Shareholder Yield % of 3.24% as of Mar. 2026. Shareholder Yield is how much money shareholders receive from a company that is in the form of cash dividends, net stock repurchases, and debt reduction. View historical data on First Merchants and its competitors. This is 86% above median its historical median of 1.74. According to the industry distribution chart, First Merchants ranks #636 out of 1502 companies in the Banks industry, placing it in the top 42.3%.
Is First Merchants' Shareholder Yield % too high?
First Merchants' current Shareholder Yield % of 3.24% is 86% above median its 10-year median of 1.74. The Banks industry median Shareholder Yield % is 1.59. First Merchants' value of 3.24% is 104.4% above this industry median. Based on the distribution chart, First Merchants ranks #636 out of 1502 companies in the Banks industry, which is above the industry midpoint. Overall, First Merchants has a GF Score™ of 61/100 and is considered Fairly Valued, reflecting its overall financial health beyond just this single metric.
How does First Merchants' Shareholder Yield % compare to CUBI and TRMK?
According to the Banks industry distribution chart, First Merchants ranks #636 out of 1502 companies for Shareholder Yield %. This puts First Merchants in the upper half of its industry. The industry median Shareholder Yield % is 1.59. First Merchants' value of 3.24% is 104.4% above this benchmark. While the company's 10-year median is 1.74 vs. the industry median of 1.59, First Merchants has consistently been above the industry average. See the competitive comparison table and distribution chart on this page for a detailed peer-by-peer breakdown.
What is a good Shareholder Yield % for a Banks company?
The median Shareholder Yield % among Banks companies is 1.59, based on 1,502 companies in the industry. Companies in the top quartile (top 25%) have a Shareholder Yield % significantly above this median, while those in the bottom quartile fall well below. However, Shareholder Yield % should not be evaluated in isolation — investors should consider it alongside profitability, growth, and financial strength metrics. First Merchants's current Shareholder Yield % of 3.24% is 104.4% above the industry median. Use the industry distribution chart on this page to see where any company falls relative to its peers.
What does a high Shareholder Yield % mean?
A high Shareholder Yield % can signal that a stock is expensive relative to its fundamentals. Shareholder Yield is how much money shareholders receive from a company that is in the form of cash dividends, net stock repurchases, and debt reduction. View historical data on First Merchants and its competitors. For the Banks industry, the median Shareholder Yield % is 1.59 — values significantly above this may indicate overvaluation, while values below may suggest a bargain or underlying issues. First Merchants's current Shareholder Yield % is 3.24%, which is 86% above median its own 10-year median of 1.74. However, context matters — high-growth companies often justify higher valuations. Always evaluate alongside other metrics like GF Score™ and GF Value™.
Is First Merchants stock overvalued right now?
Based on GuruFocus' analysis, First Merchants (FRME) is currently considered Fairly Valued. The stock's GF Value™ is $39.83, compared to a current price of $43.68 — trading 9.7% above its estimated fair value. The current Shareholder Yield % is 3.24%, which is 86% above median its 10-year median of 1.74 and 104.4% above the Banks industry median of 1.59. First Merchants' overall GF Score™ is 61/100 with 8 warning signs to review. Investors should evaluate multiple metrics — including profitability, growth, and financial strength — before making a decision.
How is Shareholder Yield % calculated?
Shareholder Yield % is calculated from a company's financial statements. For First Merchants (FRME), the current Shareholder Yield % is 3.24% as of Mar. 2026. GuruFocus calculates this using data sourced from SEC filings and annual reports. See the calculation section and 30-year financial data on this page for the full breakdown.

Is First Merchants (FRME) Overvalued in 2026?

Based on GuruFocus' analysis, First Merchants stock appears to be overvalued. The current stock price of $43.68 is trading 9.7% above its estimated GF Value™ of $39.83. GuruFocus considers First Merchants to be Fairly Valued.

Key valuation signals for FRME:

  • Shareholder Yield %: 3.24% (86% above median its 10-year median of 1.74)
  • GF Value™: $39.83 vs. price of $43.68 (9.7% above fair value)
  • GF Score™: 61/100 with 8 warning signs
  • Industry Position: 104.4% above the Banks median (#636 of 1502)

No single metric tells the full story. See the FRME stock analysis page for a complete view including 30-year financials, guru trades, and insider activity.


First Merchants Business Description

Address 200 East Jackson Street, P.O. BOX 792, Muncie, IN, USA, 47305-2814
First Merchants Corp, through its subsidiaries, provides its customers with financial services delivered locally by bankers. It offers personal banking, business banking, real estate mortgage lending, cash management services, brokerage, wealth management, and insurance. The company reports in only one segment, which is community banking.
61GF Score

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Shareholder Yield % is just one metric. See GF Value™, 30-year financials, guru trades, warning signs, and more.

$43.68
Price
$39.83
GF Value