Keefe, Bruyette & Woods Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Nicolet Bankshares (NYSE:NIC) Stock

Nicolet Bankshares (NYSE:NIC) had its price objective hoisted by Keefe, Bruyette & Woods from $160.00 to $165.00 in a report issued on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “outperform” rating on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods’ price target would suggest a potential upside of 26.06% from the stock’s current price.

Separately, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Nicolet Bankshares in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Nicolet Bankshares currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $155.33.

Nicolet Bankshares Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:NIC traded down $0.65 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $130.89. The company had a trading volume of 36,928 shares, compared to its average volume of 82,636. Nicolet Bankshares has a fifty-two week low of $97.90 and a fifty-two week high of $141.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a current ratio of 0.96 and a quick ratio of 0.96. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $125.79 and its 200 day moving average price is $128.33. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.01 and a beta of 0.76.

Nicolet Bankshares (NYSE:NIC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 23rd. The company reported $2.66 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.34 by $0.32. The firm had revenue of $102.88 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $76.83 million. Nicolet Bankshares had a net margin of 26.39% and a return on equity of 12.08%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Nicolet Bankshares will post 8.18 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Robert J. Weyers acquired 3,000 shares of Nicolet Bankshares stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 30th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $115.73 per share, with a total value of $347,190.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director owned 26,250 shares in the company, valued at $3,037,912.50. This trade represents a 12.90% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Hubert Phillip Moore, Jr. bought 240 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 30th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $115.84 per share, for a total transaction of $27,801.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 32,947 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,816,580.48. This represents a 0.73% increase in their position. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Insiders have acquired 3,370 shares of company stock worth $390,760 over the last 90 days. 14.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Nicolet Bankshares

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. First Trust Advisors LP increased its holdings in Nicolet Bankshares by 50.6% during the 2nd quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 519,013 shares of the company’s stock valued at $64,088,000 after acquiring an additional 174,361 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. grew its position in shares of Nicolet Bankshares by 485.7% in the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 184,281 shares of the company’s stock valued at $22,755,000 after purchasing an additional 152,817 shares during the last quarter. Boston Partners increased its stake in shares of Nicolet Bankshares by 40.6% during the 3rd quarter. Boston Partners now owns 199,396 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,789,000 after purchasing an additional 57,536 shares in the last quarter. Nicolet Bankshares Inc. raised its position in shares of Nicolet Bankshares by 5.5% during the 1st quarter. Nicolet Bankshares Inc. now owns 888,335 shares of the company’s stock worth $96,793,000 after purchasing an additional 45,950 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nuveen LLC acquired a new position in shares of Nicolet Bankshares during the 1st quarter worth approximately $3,754,000. 43.06% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other 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.