King Luther Capital Management Corp Trims Position in NIKE, Inc. $NKE

King Luther Capital Management Corp reduced its stake in NIKE, Inc. (NYSE:NKE) by 34.9% during the second quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 78,049 shares of the footwear maker’s stock after selling 41,847 shares during the quarter. King Luther Capital Management Corp’s holdings in NIKE were worth $5,545,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Brighton Jones LLC increased its position in NIKE by 388.5% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 202,411 shares of the footwear maker’s stock worth $15,316,000 after purchasing an additional 160,980 shares during the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC boosted its position in NIKE by 34.6% in the 1st quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 490,149 shares of the footwear maker’s stock valued at $31,126,000 after buying an additional 126,080 shares during the period. Stephens Inc. AR increased its position in shares of NIKE by 19.4% during the first quarter. Stephens Inc. AR now owns 98,799 shares of the footwear maker’s stock worth $6,272,000 after acquiring an additional 16,087 shares during the period. Westmount Partners LLC increased its holdings in NIKE by 8.2% during the 1st quarter. Westmount Partners LLC now owns 5,019 shares of the footwear maker’s stock worth $319,000 after purchasing an additional 379 shares during the period. Finally, CWM LLC increased its stake in shares of NIKE by 127.1% during the first quarter. CWM LLC now owns 86,828 shares of the footwear maker’s stock valued at $5,512,000 after buying an additional 48,598 shares during the period. 64.25% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

NIKE Price Performance

NIKE stock opened at $61.04 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.45, a current ratio of 2.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. NIKE, Inc. has a 52-week low of $52.28 and a 52-week high of $82.44. The firm has a market cap of $90.22 billion, a PE ratio of 31.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 1.29. The company’s 50 day moving average is $69.65 and its two-hundred day moving average is $68.60.

NIKE (NYSE:NKE) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, September 30th. The footwear maker reported $0.49 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.27 by $0.22. NIKE had a return on equity of 21.16% and a net margin of 6.23%.The company had revenue of $11.72 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.96 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.70 earnings per share. NIKE’s quarterly revenue was up 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that NIKE, Inc. will post 2.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at NIKE

In related news, Chairman Mark G. Parker sold 86,078 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.93, for a total transaction of $6,535,902.54. Following the sale, the chairman owned 744,988 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $56,566,938.84. This trade represents a 10.36% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Treasure Heinle sold 4,300 shares of NIKE stock in a transaction on Monday, October 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.27, for a total value of $306,461.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 29,396 shares in the company, valued at $2,095,052.92. The trade was a 12.76% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Company insiders own 0.80% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

NKE has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated a “market perform” rating and set a $75.00 price objective on shares of NIKE in a research note on Wednesday, October 1st. Weiss Ratings raised NIKE from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Morgan Stanley set a $72.00 price target on NIKE and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 1st. Cowen raised shares of NIKE from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 10th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $78.00 price target on shares of NIKE in a research report on Wednesday, October 1st. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-five have assigned a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $82.21.

About NIKE

NIKE, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, designs, develops, markets, and sells athletic footwear, apparel, equipment, accessories, and services worldwide. The company provides athletic and casual footwear, apparel, and accessories under the Jumpman trademark; and casual sneakers, apparel, and accessories under the Converse, Chuck Taylor, All Star, One Star, Star Chevron, and Jack Purcell trademarks.