UPDATE: J.P. Morgan Lowers PT on FirstMerit to $18

J.P. Morgan is out with its report today on FirstMerit FMER, lowering its PT on FMER from $19 to $18. In a note to clients, J.P. Morgan writes, "FMER shares trade at 1.6x TBV (12% premium to peers). In tandem with a slight downward revision to estimates, we are reducing our target by $1 to $18 which assumes the shares maintain their premium P/TBV valuation to peers which we view as fair given that, despite NIM pressure, ROTE at FMER is expected to continue surpassing peers in the remainder of 2011 and 2012." J.P. Morgan maintains Overweight on FMER. Shares of FMER closed Tuesday at $15.47, down 6.98% from Monday's close.