Nicolet Bankshares Insider Cashless Exercise Nets $2.8M at $140 Avg
Rhea-AI Filing Summary
Director Robert B. Atwell filed a Form 4 for Nicolet Bankshares (NIC) covering 21 Jul 2025 transactions. He exercised 20,000 stock options at $48.85 (code M), temporarily lifting his direct stake to 54,220 shares. To satisfy taxes (code F) and generate cash, he disposed of 13,096 shares at a weighted $140.11. He then sold an additional 6,904 shares in open-market trades at weighted averages of $138.83, $139.78 and $140.73 (codes S).
After all moves Atwell’s direct holding returned to 34,220 shares—unchanged from pre-exercise levels—plus 521 deferred-plan shares and 15,000 options that remain exercisable through 16 May 2027. The pattern indicates an option cashless exercise: shares acquired and immediately sold/withheld, producing no net increase in ownership.
Positive
- Full compliance with prompt Section 16 reporting reinforces transparency.
- No net share reduction; insider retains pre-transaction stake, mitigating negative signal.
Negative
- 6,904 open-market sales at ~$139 could be perceived as modest profit-taking.
- 20,000-share round-trip signals liquidity preference over increased ownership, offering limited confidence boost.
Insights
TL;DR: Cashless exercise; no net ownership change, modest open-market selling—overall neutral impact.
The 20 k-share option exercise at $48.85 generated gross value ≈$2.8 m versus a $0.98 m intrinsic cost. Atwell disposed of the same 20 k shares around $140, realising ≈$2.8 m pre-tax proceeds while maintaining his prior 34 k-share stake. Because ownership did not rise, the filing signals liquidity management rather than incremental commitment or divestiture. Volume sold (≈0.24 % of NIC’s 2.9 m shares outstanding) is immaterial to float and should have limited market impact.
TL;DR: Routine option exercise/pay-for-tax filing; governance risk unchanged.
The board member followed SEC Rule 16b disclosure within one day, demonstrating compliance. The exercise relates to fully-vested 2017 options, so no acceleration concerns. Net zero share change suggests alignment remains constant; nonetheless, continued option overhang (15 k) could lead to future similar filings.
Insider Trade Summary
| Type | Security | Shares | Price | Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Exercise | Stock Option (Right to Buy) | 20,000 | $0.00 | -- |
| Exercise | Common Stock | 20,000 | $48.85 | $977K |
| Tax Withholding | Common Stock | 13,096 | $140.11 | $1.83M |
| Sale | Common Stock | 3,334 | $138.83 | $463K |
| Sale | Common Stock | 2,517 | $139.78 | $352K |
| Sale | Common Stock | 1,053 | $140.73 | $148K |
| holding | Common Stock | -- | -- | -- |
Footnotes (1)
- The price reported in column 4 is a weighted average price. These shares were sold in multiple transactions at prices ranging from $138.240 to $139.217, inclusive. Mr. Atwell undertakes to provide to Nicolet Bankshares, Inc., any security holder of Nicolet Bankshares, Inc., or the staff of the Securities and Exchange Commission upon request, full information regarding the number of shares at each separate price within the range set forth in footnote (1) to this Form 4. The price reported in column 4 is a weighted average price. These shares were sold in multiple transactions at prices ranging from $139.277 to $140.260, inclusive. Mr. Atwell undertakes to provide to Nicolet Bankshares, Inc., any security holder of Nicolet Bankshares, Inc., or the staff of the Securities and Exchange Commission upon request, full information regarding the number of shares sold at each separate price within the ranges set forth in footnote (2) to this Form 4. The price reported in column 4 is a weighted average price. These shares were sold in multiple transactions at prices ranging from $140.309 to $141.249, inclusive. Mr. Atwell undertakes to provide to Nicolet Bankshares, Inc., any security holder of Nicolet Bankshares, Inc., or the staff of the Securities and Exchange Commission upon request, full information regarding the number of shares sold at each separate price within the ranges set forth in footnote (3) to this Form 4. The nonqualified options fully vested as of May 16, 2022. The non-qualified options are exercisable as to 15,000 shares as of the date of this report.
