United Community Banks (NYSE:UCB) vs. Nicolet Bankshares (NYSE:NIC) Head-To-Head Analysis

Nicolet Bankshares (NYSE:NIC) and United Community Banks (NYSE:UCB) are both mid-cap finance companies, but which is the better stock? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their profitability, risk, earnings, dividends, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership and valuation.

Profitability

This table compares Nicolet Bankshares and United Community Banks’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Nicolet Bankshares	21.77%	11.36%	1.62%
United Community Banks	24.43%	9.61%	1.24%

Dividends

Nicolet Bankshares pays an annual dividend of $1.44 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.9%. United Community Banks pays an annual dividend of $1.04 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.1%. Nicolet Bankshares pays out 16.3% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. United Community Banks pays out 34.2% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years. Nicolet Bankshares has increased its dividend for 2 consecutive years.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

43.1% of Nicolet Bankshares shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 82.3% of United Community Banks shares are owned by institutional investors. 7.2% of Nicolet Bankshares shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 0.4% of United Community Banks shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Risk & Volatility

Nicolet Bankshares has a beta of 0.64, indicating that its stock price is 36% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, United Community Banks has a beta of 0.88, indicating that its stock price is 12% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Nicolet Bankshares and United Community Banks”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Nicolet Bankshares	$556.52 million	6.19	$150.69 million	$8.81	18.66
United Community Banks	$1.09 billion	3.73	$328.10 million	$3.04	11.05

United Community Banks has higher revenue and earnings than Nicolet Bankshares. United Community Banks is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Nicolet Bankshares, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and target prices for Nicolet Bankshares and United Community Banks, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Nicolet Bankshares	0	2	4	1	2.86
United Community Banks	0	3	4	1	2.75

Nicolet Bankshares presently has a consensus price target of $183.00, suggesting a potential upside of 11.31%. United Community Banks has a consensus price target of $39.60, suggesting a potential upside of 17.91%. Given United Community Banks’ higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe United Community Banks is more favorable than Nicolet Bankshares.

Summary

Nicolet Bankshares beats United Community Banks on 9 of the 16 factors compared between the two stocks.

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. It also offers commercial loans, including commercial, industrial, and business loans and lines of credit; commercial real estate loans; agricultural (AG) production and AG real estate loans; commercial real estate investment real estate loans; construction and land development loans; residential real estate loans, such as residential first lien and junior lien mortgages, home equity loans, lines of credit, and residential construction loans; and consumer loans. In addition, the company provides cash management, international banking, personal brokerage, safe deposit boxes, and trust and fiduciary services, as well as wealth management and retirement plan services. Further, it offers mortgage refinancing; online services, such as commercial, retail, and trust online banking; automated bill payment, mobile banking deposits and account access, and remote deposit capture services; and other services consisting of wire transfers, debit cards, credit cards, pre-paid gift cards, direct deposits, and official bank checks, as well as facilitates crop insurance products. The company was formerly known as Green Bay Financial Corporation and changed its name to Nicolet Bankshares, Inc. in March 2002. The company was incorporated in 2000 and is headquartered in Green Bay, Wisconsin.

About United Community Banks

United Community Banks, Inc. operates as the financial holding company for United Community Bank that provides financial products and services to commercial, retail, government, education, energy, health care, and real estate sectors. The company accepts various deposit products, including checking, savings, money market, and other deposit accounts. It also offers lending services, including real estate, consumer, and commercial loans, to individuals, small businesses, mid-sized commercial businesses, and non-profit organizations, as well as secured and unsecured, and mortgage loans. In addition, the company originate loans partially guaranteed by the SBA and USDA loan programs. Further, it provides wealth management services comprising financial planning, customized portfolio management, and investment advice; trust services to manage fiduciary assets; non-deposit investment products; and insurance products, including life insurance, long-term care insurance, and tax-deferred annuities, as well as invests in residential and commercial mortgage-backed securities, asset-backed securities, the U.S. treasury, the U.S. agency, and municipal obligations. Additionally, the company offers reinsurance on a property insurance contract; insurance agency services; brokerage services; and payment processing, merchant, wire transfer, private banking, and other related financial services. It operates through a network of 171 branches in Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee. United Community Banks, Inc. was founded in 1950 and is headquartered in Blairsville, Georgia.