Analysts Set Nicolet Bankshares Inc. (NYSE:NIC) Target Price at $176.50

Shares of Nicolet Bankshares Inc. (NYSE:NIC) have earned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the six ratings firms that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month target price among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $176.50.

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on NIC. Zacks Research downgraded Nicolet Bankshares from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on Nicolet Bankshares from $165.00 to $170.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Weiss Ratings upgraded Nicolet Bankshares from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b+)” rating in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Hovde Group cut their price objective on Nicolet Bankshares from $190.00 to $180.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 23rd. Finally, Maxim Group boosted their price objective on Nicolet Bankshares from $161.00 to $173.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Robert Bruce Atwell sold 6,396 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $155.47, for a total value of $994,386.12. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 34,054 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,294,375.38. The trade was a 15.81% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 13,036 shares of company stock valued at $1,992,022. 7.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in NIC. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Nicolet Bankshares by 3,940.0% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 202 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 197 shares in the last quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp purchased a new position in Nicolet Bankshares in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $43,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Nicolet Bankshares during the fourth quarter valued at about $48,000. Clearstead Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Nicolet Bankshares by 192.9% in the fourth quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 451 shares of the company’s stock worth $55,000 after purchasing an additional 297 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Parkside Financial Bank & Trust increased its holdings in shares of Nicolet Bankshares by 45.1% in the third quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 589 shares of the company’s stock worth $79,000 after purchasing an additional 183 shares during the last quarter. 43.06% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Nicolet Bankshares Trading Down 1.2%

Shares of NYSE:NIC opened at $142.53 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $149.23 and a 200 day moving average of $138.87. The company has a market cap of $3.03 billion, a PE ratio of 16.71 and a beta of 0.70. The company has a current ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08. Nicolet Bankshares has a 12-month low of $114.11 and a 12-month high of $163.11.

Nicolet Bankshares (NYSE:NIC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 21st. The company reported $2.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.98 by ($0.23). The company had revenue of $134.85 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $129.74 million. Nicolet Bankshares had a net margin of 21.89% and a return on equity of 11.48%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Nicolet Bankshares will post 11.75 EPS for the current year.

Nicolet Bankshares Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 15th. Investors of record on Monday, June 1st will be issued a $0.36 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 1st. This represents a $1.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.0%. This is a boost from Nicolet Bankshares’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. Nicolet Bankshares’s payout ratio is presently 15.01%.

About Nicolet Bankshares

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.