Nicolet Bankshares (NYSE:NIC) Price Target Lowered to $183.00 at Piper Sandler

Nicolet Bankshares (NYSE:NIC) had its price target decreased by Piper Sandler from $185.00 to $183.00 in a research report released on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. Piper Sandler currently has an overweight rating on the stock.

Several other brokerages also recently commented on NIC. Maxim Group lifted their target price on Nicolet Bankshares from $161.00 to $173.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on Nicolet Bankshares from $165.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Hovde Group reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $190.00 target price on shares of Nicolet Bankshares in a report on Tuesday, January 27th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Nicolet Bankshares in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded Nicolet Bankshares from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $179.00.

Nicolet Bankshares Stock Down 7.8%

Shares of NIC opened at $142.78 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $3.05 billion, a PE ratio of 16.74 and a beta of 0.74. Nicolet Bankshares has a 12 month low of $114.11 and a 12 month high of $163.11. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $151.73 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $137.49. The company has a current ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11.

Nicolet Bankshares (NYSE:NIC) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 21st. The company reported $2.75 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.98 by ($0.23). The company had revenue of $134.85 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $129.74 million. Nicolet Bankshares had a return on equity of 13.92% and a net margin of 21.89%. On average, analysts anticipate that Nicolet Bankshares will post 12.45 EPS for the current year.

Nicolet Bankshares Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 15th. Investors of record on Monday, June 1st will be given a $0.36 dividend. This represents a $1.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 1st. This is a positive change from Nicolet Bankshares’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. Nicolet Bankshares’s dividend payout ratio is presently 13.06%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Robert Bruce Atwell sold 3,309 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $149.82, for a total value of $495,754.38. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 34,054 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,101,970.28. The trade was a 8.86% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Over the last three months, insiders sold 13,036 shares of company stock valued at $1,992,022. Insiders own 7.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Nicolet Bankshares

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Merit Financial Group LLC increased its position in Nicolet Bankshares by 31.2% in the 4th quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 49,314 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,982,000 after buying an additional 11,729 shares in the last quarter. Tudor Investment Corp ET AL bought a new stake in Nicolet Bankshares in the 3rd quarter valued at about $3,850,000. First Trust Advisors LP increased its position in Nicolet Bankshares by 4.1% in the 3rd quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 540,486 shares of the company’s stock valued at $72,695,000 after buying an additional 21,473 shares in the last quarter. Vest Financial LLC increased its position in Nicolet Bankshares by 17.4% in the 3rd quarter. Vest Financial LLC now owns 32,562 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,380,000 after buying an additional 4,827 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Rafferty Asset Management LLC increased its position in Nicolet Bankshares by 47.5% in the 3rd quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC now owns 13,394 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,801,000 after buying an additional 4,311 shares in the last quarter. 43.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Nicolet Bankshares News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Nicolet Bankshares this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Board approved a quarterly dividend increase to $0.36/share (12.5% raise vs prior quarter), providing income support and signaling management confidence in capital. (ex-dividend and pay dates in June)
• Positive Sentiment: Piper Sandler kept an Overweight rating and a high price target (trimmed slightly to $183), signaling continued buy-side conviction that there’s meaningful upside longer term. Piper Sandler lowers price target to $183
• Neutral Sentiment: Nicolet and Sunwest agreed on a sale of certain former MidWestOne / Bank of Denver branches — likely a regulatory or strategic divestiture tied to the MidWestOne merger that slightly trims branch footprint but helps clear integration/overlap issues. Sunwest Bank acquires former MidwestOne and Bank of Denver branches
• Neutral Sentiment: Coverage pieces note that the MidWestOne acquisition doubled NIC’s branch footprint and assets (~$15.6B) but integration risk and a stretched valuation (2.44x TBV, forward P/E above peers) argue for patience; the tone is cautious (Hold). Nicolet Bankshares Needs Time To Catch Up To Its Valuation
• Negative Sentiment: Q1 EPS of $2.75 missed consensus ($2.98) despite revenue beating estimates; earnings shortfall is the primary near-term catalyst for selling pressure as investors reassess margin/earnings momentum. NIC Q1 earnings and revenues lag estimates (Zacks)
• Negative Sentiment: Zacks Research downgraded NIC from Strong-Buy to Hold, reducing near-term buy-side conviction and contributing to downside pressure. Zacks downgrades NIC to Hold

Nicolet Bankshares Company Profile

Nicolet Bankshares, Inc is a bank holding company headquartered in Green Bay, Wisconsin. Through its subsidiary, Nicolet National Bank, it provides a range of commercial and consumer banking services to businesses, individuals and nonprofit organizations across northeastern Wisconsin and the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. The company’s branch network, digital banking platform and commercial lending centers support its focus on community banking and regional growth.

The company offers deposit products such as checking, savings and money market accounts, alongside consumer and commercial lending solutions.