Nicolet Bankshares (NYSE:NIC) Hits New 12-Month High – Still a Buy?

Nicolet Bankshares, Inc. (NYSE:NIC)’s stock price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $118.59 and last traded at $118.57, with a volume of 10044 shares. The stock had previously closed at $117.15.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have issued reports on NIC. Maxim Group increased their target price on shares of Nicolet Bankshares from $124.00 to $131.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Piper Sandler increased their target price on Nicolet Bankshares from $119.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on Nicolet Bankshares from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $119.00.

Nicolet Bankshares Stock Performance

The firm’s 50 day moving average is $108.75 and its 200-day moving average is $102.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a current ratio of 0.96. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.72 and a beta of 0.77.

Nicolet Bankshares (NYSE:NIC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 21st. The company reported $2.17 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.94 by $0.23. Nicolet Bankshares had a return on equity of 10.95% and a net margin of 23.83%. Analysts forecast that Nicolet Bankshares, Inc. will post 8.18 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Nicolet Bankshares Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 2nd were given a $0.28 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.95%. Nicolet Bankshares’s dividend payout ratio is currently 13.95%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Robert Bruce Atwell sold 3,446 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $113.00, for a total transaction of $389,398.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 32,831 shares in the company, valued at $3,709,903. This represents a 9.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Susan L. Merkatoris sold 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $111.27, for a total transaction of $111,270.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 82,218 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,148,396.86. This trade represents a 1.20 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 34,504 shares of company stock valued at $3,913,738. Company insiders own 16.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Nicolet Bankshares

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of NIC. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Nicolet Bankshares during the third quarter worth about $528,000. Barclays PLC raised its holdings in Nicolet Bankshares by 170.7% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 23,978 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,291,000 after acquiring an additional 15,121 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its position in shares of Nicolet Bankshares by 3.7% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 381,755 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,507,000 after purchasing an additional 13,772 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its stake in shares of Nicolet Bankshares by 111.7% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 32,818 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,138,000 after purchasing an additional 17,314 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Nicolet Bankshares by 1.6% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 303,391 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,019,000 after purchasing an additional 4,911 shares during the last quarter. 43.06% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Nicolet Bankshares Company Profile

Nicolet Bankshares, Inc operates as the bank holding company for Nicolet National Bank that provides banking products and services for businesses and individuals in Wisconsin and Michigan. The company accepts checking, savings, and money market accounts; various certificates of deposit; and individual retirement accounts.