Nicolet Bankshares (NYSE:NIC) Reaches New 52-Week High – Should You Buy?

Shares of Nicolet Bankshares, Inc. (NYSE:NIC) reached a new 52-week high on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $116.58 and last traded at $116.22, with a volume of 1800 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $115.93.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on NIC shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on Nicolet Bankshares from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Piper Sandler boosted their target price on shares of Nicolet Bankshares from $119.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Maxim Group lifted their price target on shares of Nicolet Bankshares from $124.00 to $131.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $119.00.

Nicolet Bankshares Trading Up 1.2 %

The company has a market capitalization of $1.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.70 and a beta of 0.77. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $108.52 and a 200-day moving average of $102.44. The company has a current ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14.

Nicolet Bankshares (NYSE:NIC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 21st. The company reported $2.17 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.94 by $0.23. Nicolet Bankshares had a net margin of 23.83% and a return on equity of 10.95%. On average, research analysts predict that Nicolet Bankshares, Inc. will post 8.1 EPS for the current year.

Nicolet Bankshares Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 2nd were issued a dividend of $0.28 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.95%. Nicolet Bankshares’s dividend payout ratio is presently 13.95%.

Insider Activity

In other Nicolet Bankshares news, EVP Brad Vincent Hutjens sold 9,000 shares of Nicolet Bankshares stock in a transaction on Monday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $112.35, for a total value of $1,011,150.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 26,674 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,996,823.90. The trade was a 25.23 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Robert Bruce Atwell sold 3,446 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $113.00, for a total transaction of $389,398.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 32,831 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,709,903. The trade was a 9.50 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 43,504 shares of company stock worth $4,924,888 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 16.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Nicolet Bankshares

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in NIC. Jackson Creek Investment Advisors LLC bought a new position in Nicolet Bankshares during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,586,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Nicolet Bankshares by 9.9% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 127,925 shares of the company’s stock valued at $13,421,000 after acquiring an additional 11,516 shares during the last quarter. Anchor Capital Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Nicolet Bankshares by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Anchor Capital Advisors LLC now owns 23,356 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,450,000 after purchasing an additional 97 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its position in Nicolet Bankshares by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 58,247 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,111,000 after purchasing an additional 950 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Rhumbline Advisers raised its stake in Nicolet Bankshares by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 19,955 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,093,000 after purchasing an additional 299 shares in the last quarter. 43.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Nicolet Bankshares

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.