First Merchants Corporation (FRME) Stock Analysis & Winston Score

First Merchants Corporation operates as the financial holding company for First Merchants Bank that provides community banking services. It accepts time, savings, and demand deposits; and provides consumer, commercial, agri-business, and real estate mortgage loans, as well as public finance. The company also offers personal and corporate trust; brokerage and private wealth management; and letters of credit, repurchase agreements, and other corporate services. It operates 109 banking locations in

Winston Score History

Growth Profile

For growth stock investors

When traditional metrics don't capture the full picture, these are the signals growth stock investors use instead.

Revenue Growth

+0.3% YoY

YoY Growth Rate

Slow revenue growth

EPS Growth

-51.6% YoY

YoY Growth Rate

Earnings declining

Insider Activity

1.8%ownership

Relatively low insider ownership

Cash Position

Cash flow positive

$98M cash & investments

Company generates more cash than it spends — no dilution risk from fundraising

Growth context

First Merchants Corporation is growing revenue at 0% year-over-year. The Winston Score measures business quality today — these growth metrics show what could matter tomorrow.

The Winston Score above measures business quality today. Growth stocks often score lower because they invest in the future rather than maximising current profits. These metrics show what matters most for evaluating that future.

Score breakdown

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Quality

Gross Margin

59.7%

Premium pricing power — 59.7% gross margin

Operating Margin

10.7%

Modest — 10.7% operating margin

ROCE

0.6%

Weak — 0.6% return on capital

ROIC between 0% and 5%. They earn a few cents back per dollar invested in the business.

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Growth

Sales YoY

+0.8%

Nearly flat sales (0.8% YoY)

EPS YoY

-4.5%

Earnings shrinking (-4.5% YoY)

Slight earnings drop. Typical near a cyclical low.

EPS Consistency

4/8 quarters

Earnings inconsistent quarter-to-quarter

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Cash Flow

Cash Conversion

141%

Turns 141% of profit into real cash

FCF Margin

26.7%

Converts sales into free cash efficiently (26.7%)

Free cash flow margin above 20%. Out of every $100 in sales, more than $20 is real cash they keep.

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Stability

Debt / Equity

0.62

Moderate — manageable debt (0.62)

Interest Cover

0.57x

Dangerous — barely covers interest (0.6x)

Interest coverage below 1. Their profits don't cover the interest bill.

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Valuation

P/E Ratio (TTM)

12.7x

no trend

Attractive valuation — P/E 12.7

P/E in the normal range. Price is roughly $15 for every $1 of yearly profit.

P/E vs Forward

N/A

not available

Data not available

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Dividends

Not applicable for this business.

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