NIKE, Inc. $NKE Shares Sold by Stephens Inc. AR

Stephens Inc. AR lowered its position in shares of NIKE, Inc. (NYSE:NKE) by 12.8% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 86,141 shares of the footwear maker’s stock after selling 12,658 shares during the period. Stephens Inc. AR’s holdings in NIKE were worth $6,119,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its holdings in NIKE by 388.5% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 202,411 shares of the footwear maker’s stock valued at $15,316,000 after acquiring an additional 160,980 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in NIKE by 39.1% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 20,877 shares of the footwear maker’s stock valued at $1,325,000 after buying an additional 5,863 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in NIKE by 9.1% during the first quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 177,009 shares of the footwear maker’s stock valued at $11,236,000 after buying an additional 14,748 shares in the last quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in NIKE by 9.7% during the first quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 122,092 shares of the footwear maker’s stock valued at $7,750,000 after buying an additional 10,823 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC lifted its stake in NIKE by 6.8% during the first quarter. Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC now owns 13,732 shares of the footwear maker’s stock valued at $872,000 after buying an additional 870 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 64.25% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Chairman Mark G. Parker sold 86,078 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.93, for a total value of $6,535,902.54. Following the transaction, the chairman owned 744,988 shares in the company, valued at approximately $56,566,938.84. This represents a 10.36% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Treasure Heinle sold 4,300 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the executive vice president owned 29,396 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,095,052.92. This trade represents a 12.76% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.80% of the company’s stock.

NIKE Trading Up 1.1%

NYSE:NKE opened at $68.39 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $72.84 and its 200 day moving average price is $67.56. NIKE, Inc. has a 52 week low of $52.28 and a 52 week high of $82.44. The company has a market capitalization of $101.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.07, a P/E/G ratio of 2.49 and a beta of 1.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a quick ratio of 1.45 and a current ratio of 2.19.

NIKE (NYSE:NKE) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, September 30th. The footwear maker reported $0.49 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 firm had revenue of $11.72 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.96 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.70 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that NIKE, Inc. will post 2.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

NIKE Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, October 1st. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 2nd were issued a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 2nd. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.3%. NIKE’s dividend payout ratio is currently 82.05%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have commented on NKE shares. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $90.00 price objective on shares of NIKE in a research note on Monday, October 13th. Telsey Advisory Group reissued a “market perform” rating and issued a $75.00 price target on shares of NIKE in a research report on Wednesday, October 1st. Argus raised shares of NIKE to a “buy” rating in a research report on Sunday, July 6th. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $115.00 price target on shares of NIKE in a research report on Monday, September 29th. Finally, Citigroup raised shares of NIKE from a “neutral” rating to a “positive” rating in a research report on Friday, September 19th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-five have issued a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, NIKE has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $82.21.

NIKE Profile

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.