NiCE (NASDAQ:NICE) Downgraded by Citigroup to "Neutral"

Key Points

• Citigroup downgraded NiCE from "buy" to "neutral" and set a $119 price target, implying about a 13.9% upside from the prior close.
• NiCE slightly beat quarterly expectations (EPS $3.24 vs. $3.23) with revenue up 9% year-over-year, set FY2026 guidance of $10.85–$11.05 EPS, and its board authorized a $600 million buyback to repurchase up to 9.6% of shares.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed with an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $144.17 (6 Buy, 7 Hold, 1 Sell), which is notably higher than Citigroup's $119 target.

NiCE (NASDAQ:NICE - Get Free Report) was downgraded by investment analysts at Citigroup from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Friday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. They currently have a $119.00 price target on the technology company's stock. Citigroup's target price points to a potential upside of 13.92% from the company's previous close.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently weighed in on NICE. Piper Sandler reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $124.00 price objective on shares of NiCE in a research note on Monday, February 23rd. Weiss Ratings restated a "sell (d+)" rating on shares of NiCE in a report on Friday, March 27th. Zacks Research raised NiCE from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 24th. Wedbush reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $120.00 price target on shares of NiCE in a research report on Friday, February 20th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reissued a "hold" rating on shares of NiCE in a research note on Thursday, February 19th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, NiCE has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $144.17.

NiCE Stock Performance

NiCE stock opened at $104.46 on Friday. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $113.40 and its 200-day simple moving average is $118.41. NiCE has a 1 year low of $94.65 and a 1 year high of $180.61. The company has a market capitalization of $6.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 0.97.

NiCE (NASDAQ:NICE - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 19th. The technology company reported $3.24 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.23 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $786.50 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $779.95 million. NiCE had a net margin of 20.78% and a return on equity of 18.26%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 9.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $3.02 EPS. NiCE has set its FY 2026 guidance at 10.850-11.050 EPS and its Q1 2026 guidance at 2.450-2.550 EPS. Equities analysts expect that NiCE will post 9.85 earnings per share for the current year.

NiCE announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback plan on Thursday, February 19th that permits the company to repurchase $600.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the technology company to reacquire up to 9.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On NiCE

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of NICE. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC grew its stake in shares of NiCE by 2.7% during the third quarter. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC now owns 2,768,920 shares of the technology company's stock worth $400,884,000 after purchasing an additional 73,083 shares in the last quarter. FIL Ltd raised its stake in NiCE by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. FIL Ltd now owns 1,732,137 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $195,801,000 after buying an additional 11,433 shares in the last quarter. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. raised its stake in NiCE by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. now owns 1,646,690 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $186,142,000 after buying an additional 15,000 shares in the last quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership lifted its holdings in NiCE by 22.1% during the 4th quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership now owns 1,256,752 shares of the technology company's stock worth $142,063,000 after buying an additional 227,631 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Lazard Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of NiCE by 116.1% during the 2nd quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 1,226,920 shares of the technology company's stock worth $207,238,000 after acquiring an additional 659,170 shares in the last quarter. 63.34% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About NiCE

NiCE Ltd is a global software provider specializing in solutions for customer engagement, financial crime prevention, public safety, workforce optimization and border security. Its product offerings include cloud-native and on-premises platforms that leverage advanced analytics, artificial intelligence and automation to help organizations enhance customer experiences, streamline operations and ensure regulatory compliance. NiCE’s portfolio addresses the needs of contact centers, financial institutions, government agencies and enterprises across a broad range of industries.

In customer engagement, NiCE delivers tools for omnichannel interaction management, real-time and historical analytics, workforce management, and quality management.

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