Royal Bank Of Canada Reaffirms “Neutral” Rating for NIKE (NYSE:NKE)

NIKE (NYSE:NKE)‘s stock had its “neutral” rating reaffirmed by investment analysts at Royal Bank Of Canada in a research report issued on Tuesday.

Several other equities research analysts have also commented on the company. Zacks Research upgraded NIKE from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 19th. CICC Research lowered their target price on NIKE from $58.00 to $44.80 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 2nd. UBS Group set a $42.00 price target on NIKE and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 17th. BTIG Research reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $55.00 price objective on shares of NIKE in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Bank of America cut their price objective on NIKE from $55.00 to $47.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 1st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating, twenty-two have issued a Hold rating and six have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $48.41.

NIKE Price Performance

Shares of NKE opened at $35.79 on Tuesday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $39.91 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $43.78. The firm has a market cap of $53.09 billion, a PE ratio of 17.15, a P/E/G ratio of 1.84 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a current ratio of 1.96, a quick ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. NIKE has a 1-year low of $35.35 and a 1-year high of $76.97.

NIKE (NYSE:NKE) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, June 30th. The footwear maker reported $0.20 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.11 by $0.09. NIKE had a return on equity of 16.54% and a net margin of 6.70%.The company had revenue of $10.97 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.85 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.14 earnings per share. NIKE’s revenue was down 1.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts anticipate that NIKE will post 1.67 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at NIKE

In other news, EVP Philip McCartney sold 2,559 shares of NIKE stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $37.59, for a total value of $96,192.81. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 78,121 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,936,568.39. The trade was a 3.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, COO Venkatesh Alagirisamy sold 3,671 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $37.59, for a total value of $137,992.89. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer owned 104,862 shares in the company, valued at $3,941,762.58. This represents a 3.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 14,974 shares of company stock worth $600,126 in the last quarter. 1.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of NIKE

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. QRG Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of NIKE by 8.5% during the 2nd quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 106,883 shares of the footwear maker’s stock worth $4,388,000 after acquiring an additional 8,338 shares in the last quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. grew its holdings in shares of NIKE by 214.0% in the second quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 32,596 shares of the footwear maker’s stock valued at $1,338,000 after purchasing an additional 22,215 shares in the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its position in NIKE by 98.4% in the second quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,202,581 shares of the footwear maker’s stock worth $90,416,000 after purchasing an additional 1,092,282 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its position in NIKE by 6.8% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 63,598,789 shares of the footwear maker’s stock worth $2,636,104,000 after purchasing an additional 4,052,428 shares during the last quarter. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its stake in NIKE by 1.9% during the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 640,889 shares of the footwear maker’s stock valued at $26,308,000 after purchasing an additional 11,884 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 64.25% of the company’s stock.

Key Headlines Impacting NIKE

Here are the key news stories impacting NIKE this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Turnaround support from a major retailer: JD Sports’ finance chief said Nike is taking the right steps and that a turnaround is ultimately a matter of time. This offers some reassurance that Nike’s brand remains strong among wholesale partners. Reuters article
• Positive Sentiment: Some analysts see substantial upside: BTIG reaffirmed its buy rating and assigned a $55 price target, implying significant appreciation from the current share price. Benchmark also upgraded Nike to hold, reducing the risk of further outright downgrades. Analyst and retail partner coverage
• Neutral Sentiment: Investors are awaiting earnings: Nike reports fiscal first-quarter results after the close on October 1. The report is expected to clarify whether improving gross margins and momentum in performance footwear can offset weakness in the lifestyle category. Benzinga earnings preview
• Negative Sentiment: Cautious earnings expectations: Analysts expect lower first-quarter revenue and earnings, while recent forecast changes include multiple price-target reductions. Barclays cut its target to $48, and Stifel reduced its target to $40, reflecting concerns about demand and the pace of recovery. Yahoo Finance earnings coverage
• Negative Sentiment: Competitive and brand risks: Kylian Mbappé ended his long-standing relationship with Nike and signed with On Holding, highlighting intensifying competition for high-profile athletes and football visibility. Insider Monkey article

About NIKE

NIKE, Inc is a global athletic footwear, apparel and equipment company headquartered near Beaverton, Oregon. The company designs, develops and markets products under the NIKE, Jordan and Converse brands, serving athletes and consumers across a broad range of sports and lifestyle categories.

NIKE’s offerings include athletic and casual footwear, sportswear, apparel, accessories and athletic equipment. The company distributes its products through company-owned retail stores, digital platforms, wholesale partners and independent distributors.