- First Merchants Corp (FRME, Financial) reports a 10.6% increase in EPS to $0.94 for Q1 2025 compared to Q1 2024.
- The company achieves strong total loan growth of $154.9 million, a 4.8% annualized increase quarter-over-quarter.
- Total deposits declined by $59.6 million quarter-over-quarter, partially due to the sale of five Illinois branches.
First Merchants Corporation (NASDAQ: FRME) posted strong financial results for the first quarter of 2025, with net income reaching $54.9 million compared to $50.1 million in the same period last year. Diluted earnings per share (EPS) rose to $0.94, a 10.6% increase from the Q1 2024 EPS of $0.85. This performance indicates solid profitability improvement year-over-year.
The company witnessed significant loan growth, with total loans increasing by $154.9 million, which translates to a 4.8% annualized growth rate from the previous quarter, and a year-over-year growth of $547.2 million, or 4.4%. First Merchants continues to maintain a robust capital position, with a Common Equity Tier 1 Capital Ratio of 11.50%.
Total deposits, however, experienced a decline of $59.6 million, or 1.6% annualized, from the previous quarter and decreased by $422.6 million, or 2.8%, year-over-year. This decline was partly due to the strategic sale of five Illinois branches, which included $267.4 million in deposits.
The net interest income for the quarter stood at $130.3 million, reflecting a decrease of $4.1 million, or 3.1%, from the previous quarter. The fully taxable equivalent net interest margin was 3.22%, a decline of six basis points from the fourth quarter of 2024, but a 12 basis point improvement from the first quarter of 2024.
Despite a slight increase in nonperforming assets to total assets to 0.47%, the bank's credit quality remained strong, with an Allowance for Credit Losses ratio of 1.47% of total loans. The efficiency ratio was maintained at a healthy 54.54% during this period, reflecting disciplined expense management.
