Boston Partners Buys Shares of 139,081 Nicolet Bankshares Inc. $NIC

Key Points

• Boston Partners has invested approximately $15.30 million in Nicolet Bankshares, acquiring 139,081 shares, which represents roughly 0.92% of the company's stock.
• Nicolet Bankshares reported strong quarterly earnings, posting $2.35 earnings per share, exceeding analysts' expectations of $2.14, and achieving revenue of $95.74 million for the quarter.
• The company recently declared an increased quarterly dividend of $0.32 per share, reflecting a yield of 1.0% and a payout ratio of 14.70%.

Boston Partners purchased a new position in shares of Nicolet Bankshares Inc. (NYSE:NIC - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 139,081 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $15,303,000. Boston Partners owned about 0.92% of Nicolet Bankshares at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in NIC. Franklin Resources Inc. acquired a new stake in Nicolet Bankshares during the fourth quarter worth about $211,000. Wells Fargo & Company MN increased its stake in Nicolet Bankshares by 70.3% during the fourth quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 13,898 shares of the company's stock worth $1,458,000 after acquiring an additional 5,736 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in Nicolet Bankshares by 2.8% during the fourth quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 5,815 shares of the company's stock worth $610,000 after acquiring an additional 157 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. increased its stake in Nicolet Bankshares by 14.5% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 28,511 shares of the company's stock worth $2,991,000 after acquiring an additional 3,600 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Renaissance Technologies LLC acquired a new stake in Nicolet Bankshares during the fourth quarter worth about $2,474,000. 43.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Nicolet Bankshares Stock Performance

Shares of NIC stock traded up $0.08 on Wednesday, hitting $130.08. 18,052 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 73,814. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a current ratio of 0.96 and a quick ratio of 0.96. The company has a market capitalization of $1.93 billion, a PE ratio of 14.93 and a beta of 0.77. Nicolet Bankshares Inc. has a 1-year low of $90.07 and a 1-year high of $141.92. The company's fifty day moving average is $127.88 and its 200 day moving average is $119.80.

Nicolet Bankshares (NYSE:NIC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 15th. The company reported $2.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.14 by $0.21. Nicolet Bankshares had a return on equity of 11.48% and a net margin of 25.12%.The business had revenue of $95.74 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $72.89 million. On average, equities research analysts predict that Nicolet Bankshares Inc. will post 8.18 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Nicolet Bankshares Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 2nd will be given a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.0%. Nicolet Bankshares's dividend payout ratio is currently 14.70%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on NIC shares. Maxim Group increased their target price on Nicolet Bankshares from $131.00 to $161.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 17th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Nicolet Bankshares from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, July 18th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on Nicolet Bankshares from $118.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a report on Thursday, July 17th. Finally, Piper Sandler reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $140.00 price target (up from $122.50) on shares of Nicolet Bankshares in a research report on Wednesday, July 16th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $145.33.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Nicolet Bankshares news, EVP Eric James Witczak sold 5,000 shares of Nicolet Bankshares stock in a transaction on Friday, July 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $139.77, for a total transaction of $698,850.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 28,901 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,039,492.77. The trade was a 14.75% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Robert Bruce Atwell sold 6,904 shares of Nicolet Bankshares stock in a transaction on Monday, July 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $139.47, for a total value of $962,900.88. Following the sale, the director directly owned 34,220 shares in the company, valued at $4,772,663.40. The trade was a 16.79% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 18,238 shares of company stock valued at $2,427,488 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 14.20% 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.