NIKE (NYSE:NKE) Shares Down 2.2% Following Analyst Downgrade

NIKE, Inc. (NYSE:NKE)’s share price was down 2.2% during mid-day trading on Thursday after Truist Financial downgraded the stock from a hold rating to a sell rating. Truist Financial now has a $29.00 price target on the stock. NIKE traded as low as $39.08 and last traded at $39.5870. 28,179,271 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 14% from the average daily volume of 24,691,826 shares. The stock had previously closed at $40.49.

A number of other equities analysts have also weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company set a $30.00 price target on shares of NIKE and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, October 2nd. Barclays reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $45.00 price objective (up from $37.00) on shares of NIKE in a research note on Thursday, October 22nd. Zacks Research downgraded shares of NIKE from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 1st. Williams Trading cut shares of NIKE from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, October 2nd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group set a $60.00 target price on shares of NIKE in a report on Friday, October 2nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating, twenty have assigned a Hold rating and twelve have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $40.93.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, COO Venkatesh Alagirisamy sold 3,671 shares of NIKE stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $37.59, for a total transaction of $137,992.89. Following the sale, the chief operating officer owned 104,862 shares in the company, valued at $3,941,762.58. This trade represents a 3.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Amy Montagne sold 4,867 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.05, for a total transaction of $204,657.35. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 57,436 shares in the company, valued at $2,415,183.80. This trade represents a 7.81% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 11,097 shares of company stock worth $438,843 in the last three months. 1.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Trending Headlines about NIKE

Here are the key news stories impacting NIKE this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Nike’s shares have climbed since its latest earnings report, and its restructuring helped expand gross margin despite lower sales. Fresh performance-focused product launches and the “Sport Offense” reset could support a longer-term recovery if they improve full-price sales. Nike vs. Lululemon article Nike product reset article
• Neutral Sentiment: Stifel reiterated a Hold rating ahead of Nike’s Nov. 16–17 investor day, leaving the event as a potential source of updates on the turnaround. Bernstein maintained a $45 price target, though reaching it depends on the company delivering the earnings improvement analysts expect. Stifel rating article Bernstein price target article
• Negative Sentiment: Truist cut its rating from Hold to Sell and set a $29 price target, citing risks across Nike’s portfolio and what it considers an elevated valuation, even after the recent rally. Truist downgrade article
• Negative Sentiment: The recovery remains fragile: Nike expects sales to decline this year, and sales in China fell 25% year over year in its latest reported quarter. That weakness could offset progress from new products and restructuring. Nike outlook and China sales article

Hedge Funds Weigh In On NIKE

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of NKE. Scarborough Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of NIKE during the 1st quarter valued at about $25,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in NIKE by 108.4% during the first quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 548 shares of the footwear maker’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 285 shares during the last quarter. Atlas Wealth LLC bought a new position in NIKE during the first quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Main Street Group LTD purchased a new position in NIKE during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Finally, Reyes Financial Architecture Inc. purchased a new position in NIKE during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. 64.25% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

NIKE Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a quick ratio of 1.39 and a current ratio of 2.07. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $36.88 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $45.88. The firm has a market cap of $58.80 billion, a PE ratio of 19.03, a PEG ratio of 4.49 and a beta of 1.01.

NIKE (NYSE:NKE) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 1st. The footwear maker reported $0.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.43 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $11.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $11.32 billion. NIKE had a return on equity of 15.94% and a net margin of 6.74%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.49 EPS. NIKE has set its FY 2027 guidance at 1.150-1.350 EPS. Equities analysts predict that NIKE, Inc. will post 1.22 EPS for the current fiscal year.

NIKE Company Profile

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

NIKE’s product portfolio includes athletic and casual footwear, performance and lifestyle apparel, sports equipment, accessories and digital fitness-related offerings. The company distributes its products through company-owned retail stores, digital platforms and wholesale partners, while also operating direct-to-consumer and membership programs.

The company traces its origins to 1964, when Phil Knight and Bill Bowerman founded Blue Ribbon Sports.