Nicolet Bankshares (NYSE:NIC) Reaches New 1-Year High – Still a Buy?

Nicolet Bankshares, Inc. (NYSE:NIC)’s stock price hit a new 52-week high on Monday . The company traded as high as $120.30 and last traded at $120.28, with a volume of 1269 shares. The stock had previously closed at $119.87.

Analyst Ratings Changes

NIC has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Piper Sandler boosted their price objective on shares of Nicolet Bankshares from $119.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Maxim Group lifted their price objective on Nicolet Bankshares from $124.00 to $131.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on shares of Nicolet Bankshares from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd.

Nicolet Bankshares Stock Up 0.2 %

The business’s 50 day moving average price is $111.36 and its 200-day moving average price is $105.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 0.96 and a quick ratio of 0.96. The company has a market cap of $1.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.49 and a beta of 0.77.

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

Nicolet Bankshares Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be issued a $0.28 dividend. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.96%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. Nicolet Bankshares’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 13.95%.

Insider Transactions at Nicolet Bankshares

In other news, Director Robert Bruce Atwell sold 3,102 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $117.65, for a total transaction of $364,950.30. Following the sale, the director now owns 33,816 shares in the company, valued at $3,978,452.40. This represents a 8.40 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Susan L. Merkatoris sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $111.27, for a total transaction of $111,270.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 82,218 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $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. Insiders have sold a total of 24,781 shares of company stock valued at $2,832,698 over the last 90 days. 16.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Nicolet Bankshares

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Sterling Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Nicolet Bankshares by 748.7% in the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 331 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 292 shares in the last quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. acquired a new stake in Nicolet Bankshares during the 4th quarter worth approximately $61,000. New York State Teachers Retirement System bought a new stake in shares of Nicolet Bankshares in the fourth quarter worth $128,000. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. grew its position in shares of Nicolet Bankshares by 11.0% in the 4th quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 1,410 shares of the company’s stock valued at $148,000 after buying an additional 140 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Quantbot Technologies LP acquired a new stake in Nicolet Bankshares during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $155,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 43.06% of the company’s stock.

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.