NiCE (NASDAQ:NICE) Shares Gap Down - What's Next?

Key Points

• Shares gapped down: NiCE opened at $106.10 vs. a prior close of $125.01 and last traded near $100.25 on heavy volume, signaling a sharp intraday selloff.
• Selloff drivers: Investors focused on year‑over‑year margin compression and a Q2 guide implying deceleration (Q2 non‑GAAP revenue $761M–$771M; EPS $2.60–$2.70) despite the quarter beating estimates.
• Longer‑term positives: Management raised full‑year non‑GAAP EPS guidance to $10.98–$11.18, cloud revenue grew ~14.6%, and a $600M share‑repurchase program plus a median analyst target (~$144) provide supportive context for longer‑term holders.

Shares of NiCE (NASDAQ:NICE - Get Free Report) gapped down before the market opened on Wednesday . The stock had previously closed at $125.01, but opened at $106.10. NiCE shares last traded at $100.2540, with a volume of 657,731 shares traded.

Key NiCE News

Here are the key news stories impacting NiCE this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q1 revenue and non‑GAAP EPS topped Street estimates — total revenue of $768.6M (+9.8% y/y) and non‑GAAP EPS of $2.64 vs consensus $2.52, showing the business still growing and beating near‑term expectations. NiCE Reports 10% Year-Over-Year Revenue Growth
• Positive Sentiment: Strong cloud performance: cloud revenue grew ~14.6% to $603.4M, supporting the company’s longer‑term CX AI growth narrative and recurring revenue base. NiCE Reports 10% Year-Over-Year Revenue Growth
• Positive Sentiment: Company raised FY‑2026 non‑GAAP EPS guidance to $10.98–$11.18 (above consensus), signaling management’s confidence in full‑year profitability despite near‑term headwinds. NiCE earnings & guidance
• Neutral Sentiment: Trading activity spiked — volume well above average, indicating broad repositioning by investors and institutions after the print. This amplifies price moves but doesn’t change fundamentals by itself. NiCE stock profile
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst coverage remains generally positive with multiple buy/outperform ratings and a median 12‑month price target well above current levels — useful context if you’re weighing a longer‑term hold vs. short‑term volatility. NICE plunges as investors focus on margin pressure...
• Negative Sentiment: Margins compressed y/y: both GAAP and non‑GAAP margins fell and GAAP net income/EPS declined (GAAP EPS around $0.77), driven in part by acquisition‑related and integration costs — investors are worried about the timing of margin recovery. NICE plunges as investors focus on margin pressure...
• Negative Sentiment: Q2 guidance implies deceleration vs recent trends — non‑GAAP revenue guide of $761M–$771M (midpoint below Street) and Q2 EPS guide $2.60–$2.70 flagged slower near‑term growth, which appears to have driven the short‑term selloff despite reiterated full‑year revenue guidance. NICE plunges as investors focus on margin pressure...

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently weighed in on NICE shares. Wedbush restated a "neutral" rating and set a $120.00 target price on shares of NiCE in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Zacks Research upgraded NiCE from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 24th. Citigroup downgraded NiCE from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $184.00 to $119.00 in a research note on Friday, April 10th. Morgan Stanley set a $148.00 target price on NiCE in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities restated a "buy" rating and set a $155.00 target price on shares of NiCE in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $144.17.

NiCE Stock Performance

The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $112.01 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $114.01. The firm has a market cap of $5.85 billion, a PE ratio of 10.02, a P/E/G ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 0.82.

NiCE (NASDAQ:NICE - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The technology company reported $2.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.52 by $0.12. The business had revenue of $768.62 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $760.94 million. NiCE had a return on equity of 18.26% and a net margin of 20.78%.The company's revenue for the quarter was up 9.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.87 EPS. NiCE has set its FY 2026 guidance at 10.980-11.180 EPS and its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.600-2.700 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that NiCE will post 8.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

NiCE declared that its board has authorized a share repurchase program on Thursday, February 19th that allows the company to repurchase $600.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the technology company to reacquire up to 9.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are often a sign that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On NiCE

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of NICE. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in NiCE by 1,637.6% in the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 4,578,940 shares of the technology company's stock worth $504,874,000 after purchasing an additional 4,315,414 shares during the period. RPD Fund Management LLC acquired a new position in NiCE in the 4th quarter worth about $100,154,000. Brandes Investment Partners LP acquired a new position in NiCE in the 4th quarter worth about $79,944,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC acquired a new position in NiCE in the 3rd quarter worth about $88,599,000. Finally, Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. raised its holdings in NiCE by 36.0% in the 4th quarter. Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. now owns 880,059 shares of the technology company's stock worth $99,482,000 after purchasing an additional 233,080 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 63.34% of the company's stock.

NiCE Company Profile

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.