Last Updated 5/5/25
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Key Dividend Details
📅 Dividend Date: May 30, 2025
📆 Ex-Dividend Date: May 15, 2025
💰 Forward Dividend Yield: 2.67%
📈 5-Year Average Yield: 2.71%
🔁 Dividend Growth (Trailing 5 Years): Steady, with annual increases
📊 Payout Ratio: 28.19%
🏦 Dividend Rate: $0.96 per share (forward)
🧾 Trailing Dividend Yield: 2.65%
First Mid Bancshares, or FMBH for short, has been around since 1865, making it one of those quiet, seasoned banks that tend to fly under the radar. Headquartered in Illinois, it’s grown into a solid regional player with more than 80 locations scattered across Illinois, Missouri, Texas, and Wisconsin. The business covers a wide swath of services—from traditional banking to wealth management and insurance—giving it some nice diversification beyond just lending.
What sets First Mid apart isn’t flashy growth or headline-grabbing news. It’s the consistency. This is a bank that’s more focused on stability and solid fundamentals than chasing trends. For dividend-focused investors, that kind of approach can be comforting. The company continues to focus on growing its footprint smartly, not hastily. Think long-term strategy, not short-term noise.
Recent Events
Over the past year, First Mid has stuck to its knitting. The company has been working through the integration of prior acquisitions, maintaining a disciplined approach to credit, and continuing to slowly build its earnings base. That work has been showing up in the numbers—quarterly earnings were up 8.1% year over year, and revenue has reached $321.7 million on a trailing basis.
The balance sheet looks healthy. With over $200 million in cash and a book value of $36.32 per share, the stock trades just about at book value. That’s not something you see too often these days, especially with a bank that’s actually profitable. The valuation feels fair, not overly stretched or artificially cheap.
Loan performance has stayed steady, and the bottom line remains healthy. Return on equity stands at 9.65%, with a profit margin north of 25%. Those numbers don’t scream growth stock, but they do speak to a well-run, efficient operation.
Key Dividend Metrics
Let’s dig into what dividend investors really want to see:
📅 Next dividend is paid out May 30, with an ex-dividend date of May 15.
💰 Yield currently sits at 2.67%—a level that feels sustainable and competitive.
📊 Payout ratio is a conservative 28.19%, which gives the company room to breathe.
🔁 The dividend has grown modestly and consistently over the years.
📈 The 5-year average yield hovers just above 2.7%, which adds to the long-term appeal.
What’s encouraging here is that none of these numbers suggest stress. There’s no stretching to pay the dividend, no erratic moves. Just measured, consistent return of capital to shareholders.
Dividend Overview
At today’s share price, investors are pocketing $0.96 per share annually in dividends. That figure alone doesn’t light the world on fire, but it’s the context that matters. With earnings at $3.37 per share, there’s plenty of room to cover the payout and keep growing it at a sustainable clip.
FMBH’s approach to dividends reflects its overall approach to business: steady and disciplined. You won’t see sudden big hikes or cuts here. Instead, management has quietly increased the payout over time, letting the compounding do its work. And with a stock that’s generally less volatile (its beta is just 0.83), the yield feels even more meaningful in a market that’s anything but calm.
Dividend Growth and Safety
For income investors, growth means very little without safety to back it up. First Mid delivers both, even if it does so in a low-key fashion. The dividend has crept higher over the years in tandem with earnings. It’s not explosive growth, but it’s reliable.
That payout ratio under 30% offers peace of mind. Even in a tougher earnings environment, FMBH would have no trouble maintaining its dividend. It’s the kind of buffer that allows for future raises, even if earnings don’t spike dramatically.
Another comforting piece of the puzzle is insider ownership—management holds more than 14% of the shares. That kind of alignment usually leads to prudent decision-making, especially when it comes to shareholder returns. They’re clearly thinking long term.
The stock also trades with fairly low short interest and modest daily volume, suggesting a relatively stable investor base. That kind of environment tends to favor dividend reliability over market drama.
All in all, FMBH may not be chasing the fastest growth, but it’s offering something that’s becoming increasingly rare: calm, steady, shareholder-friendly performance. For dividend investors who want to sleep well at night, that’s worth paying attention to.
Cash Flow Statement
First Mid Bancshares posted strong operating cash flow of $124.4 million over the trailing twelve months, nearly doubling from the prior year. This increase reflects solid core banking operations and better earnings efficiency, with consistent revenue growth and careful expense management contributing to the improvement. Free cash flow followed suit, rising to $119.5 million, indicating the bank is converting nearly all of its operating cash into available capital, even after modest capital expenditures.
On the investing side, cash outflows were minimal at just $7.5 million, a dramatic shift from the heavy investment activity seen in previous years, especially 2022’s large net inflow from asset sales. Financing activities show a net outflow of $138.8 million, mainly reflecting debt repayments and dividend distributions. While this reduced the ending cash position to $121.2 million from $143 million the year before, the overall cash flow profile remains healthy. The business is generating cash from operations faster than it’s deploying it, leaving plenty of room for dividend payments and future capital flexibility.
Analyst Ratings
First Mid Bancshares has recently seen a range of analyst opinions, reflecting a balanced but cautiously optimistic tone. 🎯 The consensus price target is currently $45.50, with individual estimates ranging from $43 to $47. That puts the expected upside at roughly 36% from where shares are trading now — a decent premium for a regional bank stock that’s flying under the radar.
📉 In November 2024, DA Davidson adjusted their view, downgrading the stock from Buy to Neutral. Interestingly, they also raised their price target from $44 to $47. That move was influenced by a broader rally in bank valuations following the U.S. election. However, the firm expressed concerns that First Mid might ramp up its acquisition activity again — a strategy they believe may not be as favorable in the current interest rate environment. Their shift to Neutral was more about relative valuation than any knock on the company’s core fundamentals.
⚖️ Over at Stephens & Co., analysts kept their Equal-Weight rating intact in January 2025 and left the price target unchanged at $43. They noted solid operating results, highlighting improving net interest margins and a drop in credit costs. But even with those positives, they stopped short of upgrading, citing overall pressure on bank stock valuations across the board.
📊 Keefe, Bruyette & Woods also maintained a Market Perform rating in December 2024, but nudged their price target up from $42 to $45. Their stance reflects confidence in First Mid’s steady performance while acknowledging the headwinds facing the broader banking sector.
🔍 While there’s no overwhelming bullish rush, analysts seem aligned in recognizing First Mid Bancshares’ operational strength. Still, they’re balancing that with macro-level caution, especially when it comes to industry-wide valuations and strategic risk.
Earning Report Summary
Strong Start to 2025
First Mid Bancshares kicked off 2025 with one of its strongest quarters yet. The company posted net income of $22.2 million, which breaks down to $0.93 per diluted share. When adjusted for one-time items, that figure ticked up to $0.96. Those numbers were a clear step above what most were expecting, and they signal that the bank is staying on track with its long-term goals.
Much of that success came from higher net interest income. The net interest margin rose to 3.60%, marking the fourth quarter in a row it’s improved. In simple terms, the bank is making more money on its loans relative to what it’s paying out on deposits. They also tightened up their funding strategy, which helped keep costs in check. Compared to the same time last year, net interest income was up just over 7%, a healthy gain in this kind of rate environment.
Lending, Deposits, and Credit Strength
Loans nudged up to $5.70 billion with particular strength in areas like construction and agriculture. Deposits grew too, hitting $6.13 billion. A good portion of that came from growth in noninterest-bearing accounts, which are the cheapest kind of funding a bank can get.
Credit quality looked solid across the board. Non-performing loans dropped to 0.47% of total loans, and the bank continues to set aside healthy reserves—1.23% of total loans—for potential losses. That kind of cushion adds peace of mind for both investors and depositors.
Other Income and Expense Management
Noninterest income came in at $24.9 million. That’s a bit lower than the previous quarter, but mainly because there was a one-time gain from a property sale last time around. Outside of that, insurance revenue hit a new record, and the wealth management arm continued to deliver steady results.
On the expense side, the bank kept things under control. The efficiency ratio, which measures how much it costs to generate a dollar of revenue, stayed around 58.9%. That’s a sign they’re running a tight ship.
Looking Ahead
One of the standout moments this quarter was the rollout of a new online banking platform for retail customers. It’s a meaningful upgrade that shows First Mid is investing in digital tools without losing sight of its community roots.
CEO Joe Dively summed it up well. He pointed to the record earnings as proof that their strategy is working—balancing strong credit discipline with smart technology investments. He also noted that the bank’s balance sheet is positioned to handle whatever the economy throws its way, thanks to a conservative lending culture and a diversified income mix.
All told, the first quarter showed a business that’s not just holding steady but actually gaining momentum. It’s clear management is focused on the long game, and the early results from 2025 are backing that up.
Final Thoughts
First Mid Bancshares (FMBH) continues to exemplify the appeal of a steady, well-managed regional bank for dividend investors. The company’s consistent profitability, improving net interest margin, and conservative financial practices, as highlighted by its strong start to 2025, underscore its stability. Coupled with a sustainable dividend yield, a low payout ratio, and a history of gradual dividend growth, FMBH offers a compelling case for those seeking reliable income and a long-term investment in the financial sector. While analyst sentiment reflects some industry-wide caution, the bank’s solid fundamentals and management’s strategic focus suggest a resilient business model capable of delivering continued value to its shareholders.