Thrivent Financial for Lutherans Makes New Investment in Nicolet Bankshares, Inc. (NYSE:NIC)

Thrivent Financial for Lutherans acquired a new stake in Nicolet Bankshares, Inc. (NYSE:NIC - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 5,081 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $533,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Swiss National Bank boosted its holdings in Nicolet Bankshares by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 26,600 shares of the company's stock worth $2,791,000 after buying an additional 400 shares during the last quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. acquired a new position in Nicolet Bankshares during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $778,000. AlphaQuest LLC grew its holdings in Nicolet Bankshares by 83.4% during the fourth quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 5,358 shares of the company's stock valued at $562,000 after purchasing an additional 2,436 shares during the period. Jackson Creek Investment Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Nicolet Bankshares in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,586,000. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in Nicolet Bankshares by 9.9% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 127,925 shares of the company's stock worth $13,421,000 after purchasing an additional 11,516 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 43.06% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on NIC. Maxim Group boosted their price target on shares of Nicolet Bankshares from $124.00 to $131.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price 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. Finally, Piper Sandler raised their price target on Nicolet Bankshares from $119.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Robert Bruce Atwell sold 3,102 shares of Nicolet Bankshares stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $117.65, for a total value of $364,950.30. Following the sale, the director now owns 33,816 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,978,452.40. The trade was a 8.40 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Susan L. Merkatoris sold 300 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $115.26, for a total value of $34,578.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 81,918 shares in the company, valued at $9,441,868.68. The trade was a 0.36 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 8,527 shares of company stock valued at $996,674 in the last quarter. 16.40% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Nicolet Bankshares Stock Up 0.1 %

Shares of NYSE:NIC traded up $0.07 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $101.93. 99,588 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 51,477. The firm has a market cap of $1.55 billion, a PE ratio of 12.69 and a beta of 0.69. Nicolet Bankshares, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $75.24 and a fifty-two week high of $121.52. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $113.59 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $108.09. The company has a quick ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14.

Nicolet Bankshares (NYSE:NIC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 21st. The company reported $2.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.94 by $0.23. Nicolet Bankshares had a return on equity of 10.95% and a net margin of 23.83%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Nicolet Bankshares, Inc. will post 8.18 earnings per share for the current year.

Nicolet Bankshares Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th were paid a $0.28 dividend. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.10%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 10th. Nicolet Bankshares's payout ratio is 13.95%.

Nicolet Bankshares Profile

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.