NiCE (NASDAQ:NICE) Shares Gap Up on Better-Than-Expected Earnings

NiCE (NASDAQ:NICE) gapped up before the market opened on Thursday after the company announced better than expected quarterly earnings. The stock had previously closed at $98.50, but opened at $106.39. NiCE shares last traded at $108.40, with a volume of 719,134 shares.

The technology company reported $3.24 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.23 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $786.50 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $779.95 million. NiCE had a return on equity of 17.71% and a net margin of 19.48%.NiCE’s revenue was up 9.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $3.02 EPS. NiCE has set its FY 2026 guidance at 10.850-11.050 EPS and its Q1 2026 guidance at 2.450-2.550 EPS.

NiCE announced that its board has authorized a share repurchase program on Thursday, February 19th that authorizes the company to buyback $600.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the technology company to buy up to 9.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

NiCE News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting NiCE this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 results narrowly beat expectations — EPS $3.24 vs. $3.23 consensus and revenue $786.5M vs. $780M consensus, showing modest upside to estimates which supports valuation. MarketBeat Q4 release
• Positive Sentiment: Cloud revenue accelerated — cloud grew 14% YoY in Q4 and 13% for full year 2025, underscoring recurring, higher‑growth revenue mix that investors favor. Business Wire: Cloud revenue growth
• Positive Sentiment: FY 2026 EPS guide raised above consensus — management set FY EPS at $10.85–$11.05 versus ~ $10.32 consensus, signaling confidence in full‑year profitability and helping offset near‑term softness. Press release / slide deck
• Neutral Sentiment: Underlying profitability metrics are solid — net margin ~19.5% and ROE ~17.7% for the quarter, supporting earnings quality but not a catalyst on their own. MarketBeat: metrics
• Neutral Sentiment: Full transcript provides management detail on demand trends and product mix; useful for investors assessing sustainability of cloud momentum. Earnings call transcript
• Negative Sentiment: Q1 2026 guidance came in below Street expectations — EPS guide $2.45–$2.55 vs. ~$2.76 consensus, and revenue guide ~$755–$765M vs. ~$779M consensus, flagging near‑term weakness that could pressure short‑term multiple. Zacks: Q4 metrics & guidance

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Citigroup upped their target price on NiCE from $209.00 to $211.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 14th. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their price objective on NiCE from $190.00 to $175.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, November 18th. Barclays cut their price objective on NiCE from $200.00 to $165.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, November 19th. Rosenblatt Securities reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $175.00 price target on shares of NiCE in a research report on Tuesday, December 23rd. Finally, Piper Sandler reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $122.00 price objective on shares of NiCE in a research note on Tuesday, December 23rd. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $156.42.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. RPD Fund Management LLC bought a new stake in NiCE in the fourth quarter worth $100,154,000. Brandes Investment Partners LP bought a new stake in NiCE during the 4th quarter valued at about $79,944,000. Lazard Asset Management LLC increased its stake in NiCE by 116.1% during the 2nd quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 1,226,920 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $207,238,000 after purchasing an additional 659,170 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC purchased a new position in NiCE in the third quarter worth about $88,599,000. Finally, Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of NiCE by 36.0% during the fourth quarter. Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. now owns 880,059 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $99,482,000 after buying an additional 233,080 shares during the last quarter. 63.34% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

NiCE Trading Up 13.2%

The company has a market capitalization of $7.06 billion, a PE ratio of 12.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 0.96. The business’s fifty day moving average is $111.21 and its two-hundred day moving average is $124.99.

NiCE Company Profile

NiCE Ltd is a global software provider specializing in solutions for customer engagement, financial crime prevention, public safety, workforce optimization and border security. Its product offerings include cloud-native and on-premises platforms that leverage advanced analytics, artificial intelligence and automation to help organizations enhance customer experiences, streamline operations and ensure regulatory compliance. NiCE’s portfolio addresses the needs of contact centers, financial institutions, government agencies and enterprises across a broad range of industries.

In customer engagement, NiCE delivers tools for omnichannel interaction management, real-time and historical analytics, workforce management, and quality management.