Hovde Group Lowers Nicolet Bankshares (NYSE:NIC) Price Target to $180.00

Key Points

• Hovde Group cut its price target for Nicolet Bankshares from $190 to $180 while maintaining an "outperform" rating, implying roughly a 26% upside from the current share price.
• Nicolet's Q1 results showed an EPS of $2.75 versus consensus $2.98 (a miss) even though revenue beat estimates, creating near-term pressure on the stock.
• The board approved a quarterly dividend increase of 12.5% to $0.36/share, while analysts' consensus remains a "Moderate Buy" with an average target of $176.50.

Nicolet Bankshares (NYSE:NIC - Get Free Report) had its price target decreased by analysts at Hovde Group from $190.00 to $180.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday. The firm currently has an "outperform" rating on the stock. Hovde Group's price objective points to a potential upside of 26.07% from the company's current price.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently issued reports on NIC. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Nicolet Bankshares in a report on Tuesday. Piper Sandler lowered their target price on Nicolet Bankshares from $185.00 to $183.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. Zacks Research cut Nicolet Bankshares from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday. Maxim Group upped their target price on Nicolet Bankshares from $161.00 to $173.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on Nicolet Bankshares from $165.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $176.50.

Nicolet Bankshares Price Performance

Shares of NIC stock opened at $142.78 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11. Nicolet Bankshares has a twelve month low of $114.11 and a twelve month high of $163.11. The company has a market cap of $3.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.74 and a beta of 0.74. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $151.73 and a 200 day simple moving average of $137.49.

Nicolet Bankshares (NYSE:NIC - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results 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). Nicolet Bankshares had a return on equity of 13.92% and a net margin of 21.89%.The firm had revenue of $134.85 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $129.74 million. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Nicolet Bankshares will post 12.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Nicolet Bankshares

In other news, Director Robert Bruce Atwell sold 3,309 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 12th. The stock was 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 approximately $5,101,970.28. This represents a 8.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders sold a total of 13,036 shares of company stock valued at $1,992,022 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 7.20% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Nicolet Bankshares

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. PDT Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of Nicolet Bankshares by 1.8% in the second quarter. PDT Partners LLC now owns 5,572 shares of the company's stock valued at $688,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the period. ProShare Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Nicolet Bankshares by 4.9% in the fourth quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 2,424 shares of the company's stock valued at $294,000 after buying an additional 113 shares during the period. LPL Financial LLC increased its stake in shares of Nicolet Bankshares by 4.6% in the fourth quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 2,836 shares of the company's stock valued at $344,000 after buying an additional 126 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Nicolet Bankshares by 71.8% in the third quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 347 shares of the company's stock valued at $47,000 after buying an additional 145 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of Montreal Can increased its stake in shares of Nicolet Bankshares by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 23,181 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,829,000 after buying an additional 147 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 43.06% of the company's stock.

Trending Headlines about Nicolet Bankshares

Here are the key news stories impacting Nicolet Bankshares this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Board approved a quarterly dividend increase to $0.36/share (12.5% raise vs prior quarter), providing income support and signaling management confidence in capital. (ex-dividend and pay dates in June)
• Positive Sentiment: Piper Sandler kept an Overweight rating and a high price target (trimmed slightly to $183), signaling continued buy-side conviction that there's meaningful upside longer term. Piper Sandler lowers price target to $183
• Neutral Sentiment: Nicolet and Sunwest agreed on a sale of certain former MidWestOne / Bank of Denver branches — likely a regulatory or strategic divestiture tied to the MidWestOne merger that slightly trims branch footprint but helps clear integration/overlap issues. Sunwest Bank acquires former MidwestOne and Bank of Denver branches
• Neutral Sentiment: Coverage pieces note that the MidWestOne acquisition doubled NIC’s branch footprint and assets (~$15.6B) but integration risk and a stretched valuation (2.44x TBV, forward P/E above peers) argue for patience; the tone is cautious (Hold). Nicolet Bankshares Needs Time To Catch Up To Its Valuation
• Negative Sentiment: Q1 EPS of $2.75 missed consensus ($2.98) despite revenue beating estimates; earnings shortfall is the primary near-term catalyst for selling pressure as investors reassess margin/earnings momentum. NIC Q1 earnings and revenues lag estimates (Zacks)
• Negative Sentiment: Zacks Research downgraded NIC from Strong-Buy to Hold, reducing near-term buy-side conviction and contributing to downside pressure. Zacks downgrades NIC to Hold

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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