NIKE (NYSE:NKE) Stock Price Up 1.9% – Time to Buy?

NIKE, Inc. (NYSE:NKE)’s stock price rose 1.9% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $44.07 and last traded at $43.8710. Approximately 19,198,670 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 1% from the average daily volume of 19,362,246 shares. The stock had previously closed at $43.06.

NIKE News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting NIKE this week:

• Negative Sentiment: Wells Fargo downgraded NIKE to Equal Weight from Overweight and cut its price target to $45 from $55, saying a GLP-1-driven shift in consumer behavior could become a new headwind for athletic wear demand. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Reuters reported that bets against NIKE have surged, adding to pressure on CEO Elliott Hill to stabilize performance and restore investor confidence. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: NIKE is also facing ongoing scrutiny over weak earnings, revenue pressure, and restructuring costs as it moves ahead with nearly 1,400 job cuts tied to its “Win Now” overhaul. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: NIKE’s board declared a quarterly dividend of $0.41 per share, which supports the company’s shareholder-return story but does not offset the broader concerns around growth and execution. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Several articles note increased investor attention and valuation-reset chatter, but these appear to be more reflective of market interest than a clear fundamental catalyst. Article Title

Analysts Set New Price Targets

NKE has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Truist Financial lowered their price objective on NIKE from $69.00 to $57.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 1st. CICC Research cut NIKE from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $69.00 to $58.00 in a research note on Monday, April 6th. Needham & Company LLC cut NIKE from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price objective on NIKE from $65.00 to $56.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 1st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company set a $45.00 price objective on NIKE and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday. Sixteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eighteen have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $62.04.

NIKE Stock Down 0.7%

The company has a quick ratio of 1.45, a current ratio of 2.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50. The company has a market cap of $65.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 1.12. The company has a fifty day moving average of $50.16 and a 200 day moving average of $59.14.

NIKE (NYSE:NKE) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 31st. The footwear maker reported $0.35 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.29 by $0.06. NIKE had a return on equity of 16.41% and a net margin of 4.84%.The company had revenue of $11.28 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.23 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.54 earnings per share. NIKE’s revenue was up .1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts anticipate that NIKE, Inc. will post 1.51 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

NIKE Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 1st. Investors of record on Monday, June 1st will be issued a $0.41 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 1st. This represents a $1.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.7%. NIKE’s payout ratio is presently 108.61%.

Insider Transactions at NIKE

In other news, Director Timothy D. Cook acquired 25,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 10th. The stock was bought at an average price of $42.43 per share, with a total value of $1,060,750.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director directly owned 130,480 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,536,266.40. The trade was a 23.70% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Robert Holmes Swan purchased 11,781 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 7th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $42.44 per share, with a total value of $499,985.64. Following the acquisition, the director directly owned 55,074 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,337,340.56. This trade represents a 27.21% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders purchased 64,441 shares of company stock worth $2,734,204. 0.80% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of NIKE

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Main Street Financial Solutions LLC grew its holdings in NIKE by 4.2% during the second quarter. Main Street Financial Solutions LLC now owns 3,441 shares of the footwear maker’s stock valued at $244,000 after purchasing an additional 139 shares during the period. Diligent Investors LLC grew its holdings in NIKE by 4.3% during the fourth quarter. Diligent Investors LLC now owns 3,719 shares of the footwear maker’s stock valued at $237,000 after purchasing an additional 153 shares during the period. CVA Family Office LLC grew its holdings in NIKE by 8.0% during the third quarter. CVA Family Office LLC now owns 2,113 shares of the footwear maker’s stock valued at $147,000 after purchasing an additional 156 shares during the period. Naples Global Advisors LLC grew its holdings in NIKE by 1.9% during the third quarter. Naples Global Advisors LLC now owns 8,514 shares of the footwear maker’s stock valued at $597,000 after purchasing an additional 159 shares during the period. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its holdings in NIKE by 4.3% during the fourth quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 3,978 shares of the footwear maker’s stock valued at $253,000 after purchasing an additional 163 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 64.25% of the company’s stock.

NIKE Company Profile

Nike, Inc (NYSE: NKE) is a global designer, marketer and distributor of athletic footwear, apparel, equipment and accessories. Founded in 1964 as Blue Ribbon Sports by Phil Knight and Bill Bowerman and renamed Nike in 1971, the company is headquartered near Beaverton, Oregon. Nike develops and commercializes products across performance and lifestyle categories for sports including running, basketball, soccer and training, and is known for signature technologies and design-driven product lines.

The company markets products under several primary brands, including Nike, Jordan and Converse, and sells through a combination of wholesale relationships, branded retail stores and direct-to-consumer channels such as company-operated stores and digital platforms (e.g., Nike.com and mobile apps).