NiCE (NASDAQ:NICE) Issues Q1 2026 Earnings Guidance

NiCE (NASDAQ:NICE) issued an update on its first quarter 2026 earnings guidance on Thursday morning. The company provided earnings per share guidance of 2.450-2.550 for the period, compared to the consensus earnings per share estimate of 2.760. The company issued revenue guidance of $755.0 million-$765.0 million, compared to the consensus revenue estimate of $779.4 million. NiCE also updated its FY 2026 guidance to 10.850-11.050 EPS.

NiCE Stock Up 5.5%

NICE opened at $117.69 on Friday. NiCE has a twelve month low of $94.65 and a twelve month high of $180.61. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $111.38 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $124.72. The stock has a market cap of $7.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.17, a PEG ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.96.

NiCE (NASDAQ:NICE) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 19th. The technology company reported $3.24 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.23 by $0.01. NiCE had a net margin of 20.78% and a return on equity of 18.48%. The company had revenue of $786.50 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $779.95 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $3.02 EPS. NiCE’s quarterly revenue was up 9.0% compared to the same quarter last year. NiCE has set its FY 2026 guidance at 10.850-11.050 EPS and its Q1 2026 guidance at 2.450-2.550 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that NiCE will post 9.85 earnings per share for the current year.

NiCE announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback plan on Thursday, February 19th that permits the company to repurchase $600.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the technology company to purchase up to 9.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the company. Wedbush reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $120.00 price target on shares of NiCE in a research report on Friday. Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their price objective on shares of NiCE from $175.00 to $150.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday. Barclays cut their target price on shares of NiCE from $200.00 to $165.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, November 19th. DA Davidson lowered their price target on shares of NiCE from $150.00 to $130.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, November 18th. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities restated a “buy” rating and set a $155.00 price target on shares of NiCE in a research note on Friday. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $151.67.

Key NiCE News

Here are the key news stories impacting NiCE this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 results slightly beat expectations and showed strength in cloud business (cloud revenue +14% Y/Y), driven by AI-related demand—this was the main catalyst cited for the upside. Zacks: NICE Q4 Earnings Beat
• Positive Sentiment: NiCE raised FY2026 EPS guidance to $10.85–$11.05, above Wall Street consensus, which supports a constructive longer‑term earnings outlook. FY2026 Guidance (press release/slide deck)
• Positive Sentiment: Board approved a $600 million share repurchase program (up to ~9.6% of shares outstanding), signaling management believes shares are undervalued and providing buyback-driven EPS support. RTT News: Buyback
• Positive Sentiment: Sell‑side support remains: Rosenblatt reaffirmed a “buy” and $155 price target, showing continued analyst conviction among some firms. Benzinga: Rosenblatt rating
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst coverage is mixed overall—Wedbush reaffirmed a “neutral” rating with a $120 target, reflecting differing views on near‑term execution vs. long‑term opportunity. Benzinga: Wedbush rating
• Neutral Sentiment: Full Q4 earnings and the conference call-transcript are available for deeper read‑throughs of product traction, channel commentary and AI pipeline details. MSN: Q4 earnings call transcript
• Negative Sentiment: Q1 2026 guidance came in below Wall Street expectations (EPS $2.45–$2.55 vs. consensus ~2.76 and revenue guidance below consensus), creating near‑term execution uncertainty that could cap upside. Q1 Guidance (slide deck/press materials)
• Negative Sentiment: RBC trimmed its price target (from $175 to $150) despite keeping an outperform rating—this reduction tempers some upside expectations from peer analysts. The Fly: RBC target cut

Institutional Trading of NiCE

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Merit Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in NiCE by 16.3% in the 3rd quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 1,923 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $278,000 after purchasing an additional 269 shares during the period. Blair William & Co. IL raised its position in shares of NiCE by 40.0% in the third quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 1,742 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $252,000 after buying an additional 498 shares in the last quarter. Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in shares of NiCE in the third quarter worth $234,000. AQR Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in NiCE during the first quarter worth about $226,000. Finally, Inspire Investing LLC increased its stake in NiCE by 33.1% in the 4th quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 1,976 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $223,000 after acquiring an additional 491 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 63.34% of the company’s stock.

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.