Sifting through countless of stocks in the Banks industry can be tedious, and sometimes two stocks are just too similar to judge which is the better investment. If you’re on the fence about investing in Glacier Bancorp, Inc. or First Merchants Corporation because you’re not sure how they measure up, it’s important to compare them on a few factors before making your decision.

Read on to learn how Glacier Bancorp, Inc. and First Merchants Corporation compare based on key financial metrics to determine which better meets your investment needs.

About Glacier Bancorp, Inc. and First Merchants Corporation

Glacier Bancorp, Inc. operates as the bank holding company for Glacier Bank that provides commercial banking services to individuals, small to medium-sized businesses, community organizations, and public entities in the United States. It offers retail banking; business banking and mortgage origination and loan servicing services. The company also accepts deposit products, including non-interest bearing deposit and interest bearing deposit accounts, such as negotiable order of withdrawal, demand deposit accounts, savings, money market deposits, fixed rate certificates of deposit, negotiated-rate jumbo certificates, and individual retirement accounts. In addition, it offers credit risk management, construction and permanent loans on residential real estate, consumer land or lot loans, unimproved land and land development loans, construction loans, commercial real estate loans, agricultural and consumer lending, home equity loans, and states and political subdivisions lending, as well as residential builder guidance lines comprising pre-sold and spec-home construction, and lot acquisition loans. Glacier Bancorp, Inc. was founded in 1955 and is headquartered in Kalispell, Montana.

First Merchants Corporation operates as the financial holding company for First Merchants Bank that provides commercial and consumer banking services. The company offers a range of financial services, including checking, savings, and deposit products; debit and credit cards; mortgages, refinance, construction or renovation of residential properties, agricultural lending, treasury management services and depository products. It also provides personal and commercial wealth management services, brokerage, investment management, private banking, fiduciary estate, and financial planning services. The company operates banking locations in Indiana, Ohio, and Michigan counties. It offers its services through electronic and mobile delivery channels. First Merchants Corporation was founded in 1893 and is headquartered in Muncie, Indiana.

Latest Banks and Glacier Bancorp, Inc., First Merchants Corporation Stock News

As of September 2, 2026, Glacier Bancorp, Inc. had a $6.0 billion market capitalization, compared to the Banks median of $750.0 million. Glacier Bancorp, Inc.’s stock is NA in 2026, NA in the previous five trading days and down 4.8% in the past year.

Currently, Glacier Bancorp, Inc.’s price-earnings ratio is 19.0. Glacier Bancorp, Inc.’s trailing 12-month revenue is $1.1 billion with a 27.6% net profit margin. Year-over-year quarterly sales growth most recently was 41.5%. Analysts expect adjusted earnings to reach $3.122 per share for the current fiscal year. Glacier Bancorp, Inc. currently has a 2.8% dividend yield.

Currently, First Merchants Corporation’s price-earnings ratio is 13.5. First Merchants Corporation’s trailing 12-month revenue is $642.2 million with a 29.0% net profit margin. Year-over-year quarterly sales growth most recently was 2.8%. Analysts expect adjusted earnings to reach $3.863 per share for the current fiscal year. First Merchants Corporation currently has a 3.6% dividend yield.

How We Compare Glacier Bancorp, Inc. and First Merchants Corporation Stock Grades

Stock evaluation requires access to huge amounts of data and the knowledge and time to sift through it all, make sense of financial ratios, read income statements and analyze recent stock movements. AAII created A+ Investor, a robust data suite that condenses data research in an actionable and customizable way suitable for investors of all knowledge levels, to help investors streamline and work through such data.

AAII’s proprietary stock grades come with A+ Investor. These offer intuitive A‐F grades for each of five key investing factors: value, growth, momentum, earnings estimate revisions and quality. Here, we’ll take a closer look at Glacier Bancorp, Inc. and First Merchants Corporation’s stock grades to see how they measure up against one another.

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Glacier Bancorp, Inc. and First Merchants Corporation Stock Value Grades

Company	Ticker	Value
Glacier Bancorp, Inc.	GBCI	D
First Merchants Corporation	FRME	C

Successful stock investing involves buying low and selling high, so stock valuation is an important consideration for stock selection.

Buying stocks that are going to go up typically means buying stocks that are undervalued in the first place, although momentum investors may argue that point.

AAII’s A+ Investor Value Grade derives from a stock’s value score. The Value Score is the percentile rank of the average of the percentile ranks of the price-to-sales ratio, price-earnings ratio, enterprise-value-to-EBITDA (EV/EBITDA) ratio, shareholder yield, price-to-book-value ratio and price-to-free-cash-flow ratio. The score is variable, meaning it can consider all six ratios or, should any of the six ratios not be valid, the remaining ratios that are valid. To be assigned a Value Score, stocks must have a valid (non-null) ratio and corresponding ranking for at least two of the six valuation ratios.

Stocks with a Value Score from 81 to 100 are considered deep value, those with a score between 61 and 80 are a good value and so on.

Glacier Bancorp, Inc. has a Value Score of 32, which is Expensive. First Merchants Corporation has a Value Score of 58, which is Average.

The Value Stock Winner: No Clear Winner

Neither Glacier Bancorp, Inc. or First Merchants Corporation has a high enough value grade to be considered a “winner.” Investors who are considering these companies should do additional due diligence and research to see if either could be a good addition to their portfolio. It’s important to look at a wide range of financial metrics in order to determine if Glacier Bancorp, Inc. or First Merchants Corporation is the better investment when it comes to value.

Glacier Bancorp, Inc. and First Merchants Corporation Growth Grades

Company	Ticker	Growth
Glacier Bancorp, Inc.	GBCI	B
First Merchants Corporation	FRME	A

The foundation of growth investing is seeking out stocks of companies exhibiting strong, consistent and prolonged growth that is expected to continue into the future.

In order to compute the growth score and assign it a letter grade, the percentile ranks for each of three components‐consistency of annual sales growth, five-year sales growth rankings adjusted for extreme levels, and consistency of positive annual cash from operations‐must be determined. These three rank figures are added together, and the sum is ranked against the entire stock universe to arrive at a company’s Growth Score to create an equal distribution of grades.

The companies in the bottom 20% of the stock universe receive Growth Grades of F, considered to be very weak, while those in the top 20% receive A grades, which are considered very strong.

Glacier Bancorp, Inc. has a Growth Score of 73, which is Strong. First Merchants Corporation has a Growth Score of 95, which is Very Strong.

The Growth Grade Winner: First Merchants Corporation

As you can clearly see from the Growth Grade breakdown above, First Merchants Corporation has a more attractive growth grade than Glacier Bancorp, Inc.. For investors who focus solely on how a company is growing relative to other companies in the same industry, First Merchants Corporation could be a good stock to add to their portfolio. However, it’s important for investors to analyze multiple factors based on a wide range of metrics before deciding whether to buy.

Glacier Bancorp, Inc. and First Merchants Corporation’s Momentum Grades

Company	Ticker	Momentum
Glacier Bancorp, Inc.	GBCI	D
First Merchants Corporation	FRME	C

Momentum grades help to uncover stocks experiencing anomalously high rates of return; research finds that stocks with high relative levels of momentum tend to outperform, whereas those with low levels of momentum tend to continue underperforming. Momentum is based on the price change of a stock over a specified period relative to all other stocks.

Typically, AAII looks at the weighted relative strength over the trailing four quarters. The weighted four-quarter relative strength rank is the relative price change for each of the past four quarters. The most recent quarterly price change is given a weight of 40% and each of the three previous quarters are given a weighting of 20%.

Glacier Bancorp, Inc. has a Momentum Score of 35, which is Weak. First Merchants Corporation has a Momentum Score of 43, which is Average.

The Momentum Stock Winner: No Clear Winner

Neither Glacier Bancorp, Inc. or First Merchants Corporation has a strong enough Momentum Grade to be considered a “winner.” Investors considering these companies should do additional due diligence and research to see if either could be a good addition to their portfolios. It’s important to look at a wide range of financial metrics in order to determine if Glacier Bancorp, Inc. or First Merchants Corporation is the better investment when it comes to momentum.

Other Glacier Bancorp, Inc. and First Merchants Corporation Grades

In addition to Value, Growth and Momentum, A+ Investor also provides grades for Estimate Revisions and Quality.

Earnings estimate revisions scores take into account the magnitude of a company’s earnings surprise in its last two reported fiscal quarters. Often, surprises beget further surprises‐or at least continued sales growth (the exact opposite is generally true, too).

AAII’s A+ Investor Quality Grade comes from the ranking of key metrics. Specifically, the quality grade is the percentile rank of the composite of return on assets (ROA), return on invested capital (ROIC), gross profit relative to assets, buyback yield, change in total liabilities to assets, accruals, Z double prime bankruptcy risk (Z) score and F-Score.

These 2 key factors, when combined with the above, provide a holistic view into a particular stock. Further, by joining A+ Investor you can see whether Glacier Bancorp, Inc. and First Merchants Corporation pass any of our 60+ stock screens that have outperformed the market since their creation.

So, Which Is the Better Investment, Glacier Bancorp, Inc. or First Merchants Corporation Stock?

Overall, Glacier Bancorp, Inc. stock has a Value Score of 32, Growth Score of 73 and Momentum Score of 35.

First Merchants Corporation stock has a Value Score of 58, Growth Score of 95 and Momentum Score of 43.

Comparing Glacier Bancorp, Inc. and First Merchants Corporation’s grades, scores and metrics can act as a solid basis to determine whether they may be a good investment or not. You’ll also want to look at your portfolio’s asset allocation as well as your risk tolerance and financial goals to see if either of these stocks would make a good fit for you. AAII can help you figure out which investments align with your individual needs and preferences.

Investors are encouraged to do their own due diligence and research. In this way, individuals can effectively become managers of their own assets‐without having to rely on others for financial independence. You can count on AAII for timeless articles on financial planning and stock-picking, unbiased research and actionable analysis.

A+ Investor adds to our qualitative teaching with a powerful data suite to help you whittle down investment choices to find stocks, exchange-traded funds (ETFs) or mutual funds that meet your needs.

AAII Disclaimer

We make no representations or warranties that any investor will, or is likely to, achieve profits similar to those shown, because past, hypothetical or simulated performance is not necessarily indicative of future results. Before making an investment decision, you should consider your circumstances and whether the information on our content is applicable to your situation. This information was prepared in good faith, and we accept no liability for any errors or omissions. The full disclaimer can be read here.