Merit Financial Group LLC Raises Holdings in Nicolet Bankshares Inc. $NIC

Key Points

• Merit Financial Group LLC increased its stake in Nicolet Bankshares by 31.2% in Q4 to 49,314 shares (about $5.98M), and institutional investors now own roughly 43.06% of the company.
• Recent quarter beat expectations—EPS $2.73 vs. $2.55 estimate and revenue $103.99M vs. $79.67M—while profitability (net margin 26.98%, ROE 12.49%) supports a MarketBeat consensus "Buy" rating with a $179.50 target.
• Shares trade near $157.89 with a market cap of $3.37B and a P/E of 16.11; the firm pays a $0.32 quarterly dividend ($1.28 annually, 0.8% yield) and insiders have sold 13,036 shares in the last 90 days (director sold 3,309).

Merit Financial Group LLC grew its position in shares of Nicolet Bankshares Inc. (NYSE:NIC - Free Report) by 31.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 49,314 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 11,729 shares during the period. Merit Financial Group LLC owned approximately 0.33% of Nicolet Bankshares worth $5,982,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Nicolet Bankshares by 3,940.0% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 202 shares of the company's stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 197 shares during the last quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp bought a new position in shares of Nicolet Bankshares in the 3rd quarter valued at about $43,000. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust lifted its holdings in shares of Nicolet Bankshares by 45.1% in the 3rd quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 589 shares of the company's stock valued at $79,000 after acquiring an additional 183 shares during the last quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue bought a new position in shares of Nicolet Bankshares in the 3rd quarter valued at about $80,000. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of Nicolet Bankshares in the 2nd quarter valued at about $133,000. Institutional investors own 43.06% of the company's stock.

Nicolet Bankshares Stock Up 1.6%

Shares of NYSE NIC opened at $157.89 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a current ratio of 0.97 and a quick ratio of 0.97. The company has a market cap of $3.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.11 and a beta of 0.74. Nicolet Bankshares Inc. has a 1 year low of $108.13 and a 1 year high of $163.11. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $151.80 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $137.10.

Nicolet Bankshares (NYSE:NIC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 20th. The company reported $2.73 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.55 by $0.18. The business had revenue of $103.99 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $79.67 million. Nicolet Bankshares had a net margin of 26.98% and a return on equity of 12.49%. Research analysts anticipate that Nicolet Bankshares Inc. will post 8.18 earnings per share for the current year.

Nicolet Bankshares Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 2nd were paid a $0.32 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 2nd. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.8%. Nicolet Bankshares's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 13.06%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently commented on NIC. Zacks Research raised shares of Nicolet Bankshares from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, December 30th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Nicolet Bankshares in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Hovde Group reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $190.00 price target on shares of Nicolet Bankshares in a report on Tuesday, January 27th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on shares of Nicolet Bankshares from $165.00 to $170.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Finally, Piper Sandler raised shares of Nicolet Bankshares from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and increased their price target for the company from $148.00 to $185.00 in a report on Thursday, February 19th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and five have given a Buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $179.50.

Insider Transactions at Nicolet Bankshares

In other Nicolet Bankshares news, Director Robert Bruce Atwell sold 3,309 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $149.82, for a total value of $495,754.38. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 34,054 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,101,970.28. This trade represents a 8.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders have sold a total of 13,036 shares of company stock valued at $1,992,022 over the last ninety days. 7.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.

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