Key Insights

• Given the large stake in the stock by institutions, Nicolet Bankshares' stock price might be vulnerable to their trading decisions
• 49% of the business is held by the top 25 shareholders
• Insiders have been selling lately

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Every investor in Nicolet Bankshares, Inc. (NYSE:NIC) should be aware of the most powerful shareholder groups. We can see that institutions own the lion's share in the company with 48% ownership. In other words, the group stands to gain the most (or lose the most) from their investment into the company.

Because institutional owners have a huge pool of resources and liquidity, their investing decisions tend to carry a great deal of weight, especially with individual investors. Therefore, a good portion of institutional money invested in the company is usually a huge vote of confidence on its future.

In the chart below, we zoom in on the different ownership groups of Nicolet Bankshares.

Check out our latest analysis for Nicolet Bankshares

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Nicolet Bankshares?

Institutional investors commonly compare their own returns to the returns of a commonly followed index. So they generally do consider buying larger companies that are included in the relevant benchmark index.

We can see that Nicolet Bankshares does have institutional investors; and they hold a good portion of the company's stock. This suggests some credibility amongst professional investors. But we can't rely on that fact alone since institutions make bad investments sometimes, just like everyone does. If multiple institutions change their view on a stock at the same time, you could see the share price drop fast. It's therefore worth looking at Nicolet Bankshares' earnings history below. Of course, the future is what really matters.

We note that hedge funds don't have a meaningful investment in Nicolet Bankshares. Our data shows that BlackRock, Inc. is the largest shareholder with 7.2% of shares outstanding. Meanwhile, the second and third largest shareholders, hold 5.5% and 4.8%, of the shares outstanding, respectively. In addition, we found that Michael Daniels, the CEO has 0.6% of the shares allocated to their name.

A deeper look at our ownership data shows that the top 25 shareholders collectively hold less than half of the register, suggesting a large group of small holders where no single shareholder has a majority.

Researching institutional ownership is a good way to gauge and filter a stock's expected performance. The same can be achieved by studying analyst sentiments. Quite a few analysts cover the stock, so you could look into forecast growth quite easily.

Insider Ownership Of Nicolet Bankshares

While the precise definition of an insider can be subjective, almost everyone considers board members to be insiders. Management ultimately answers to the board. However, it is not uncommon for managers to be executive board members, especially if they are a founder or the CEO.

I generally consider insider ownership to be a good thing. However, on some occasions it makes it more difficult for other shareholders to hold the board accountable for decisions.

It seems insiders own a significant proportion of Nicolet Bankshares, Inc.. It is very interesting to see that insiders have a meaningful US$191m stake in this US$1.7b business. It is good to see this level of investment. You can check here to see if those insiders have been buying recently.

General Public Ownership

With a 41% ownership, the general public, mostly comprising of individual investors, have some degree of sway over Nicolet Bankshares. This size of ownership, while considerable, may not be enough to change company policy if the decision is not in sync with other large shareholders.

Next Steps:

It's always worth thinking about the different groups who own shares in a company. But to understand Nicolet Bankshares better, we need to consider many other factors.

I like to dive deeper into how a company has performed in the past. You can access this interactive graph of past earnings, revenue and cash flow, for free.

If you would prefer discover what analysts are predicting in terms of future growth, do not miss this free report on analyst forecasts.

NB: Figures in this article are calculated using data from the last twelve months, which refer to the 12-month period ending on the last date of the month the financial statement is dated. This may not be consistent with full year annual report figures.

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This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.