Formula Growth Ltd. Takes Position in NIKE, Inc. $NKE

Formula Growth Ltd. bought a new position in NIKE, Inc. (NYSE:NKE) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 15,000 shares of the footwear maker’s stock, valued at approximately $616,000.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in NKE. Scarborough Advisors LLC bought a new stake in NIKE in the first quarter worth $25,000. Cornerstone Financial Management LLC purchased a new stake in NIKE during the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. Sankala Group LLC bought a new position in NIKE during the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. J.Safra Asset Management Corp bought a new position in NIKE during the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, Meeder Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of NIKE by 108.4% in the 1st quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 548 shares of the footwear maker’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 285 shares in the last quarter. 64.25% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

NIKE Trading Down 0.6%

Shares of NKE opened at $38.34 on Friday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $42.02 and its 200-day simple moving average is $47.17. The company has a market cap of $56.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.34, a P/E/G ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 1.11. 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, Inc. has a twelve month low of $38.17 and a twelve month high of $79.13.

NIKE (NYSE:NKE) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, June 30th. The footwear maker reported $0.20 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.11 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $10.97 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.85 billion. NIKE had a net margin of 6.70% and a return on equity of 16.54%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.14 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that NIKE, Inc. will post 1.74 EPS for the current year.

NIKE Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 1st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 1st will be given a dividend of $0.41 per share. This represents a $1.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.3%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 1st. NIKE’s payout ratio is 78.47%.

NIKE News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting NIKE this week:

• Positive Sentiment: NIKE is appointing a senior executive with Walmart experience as it seeks to improve sales execution and rebuild momentum. The leadership addition provides a potential catalyst, although investors will likely want evidence of stronger results before changing their outlook. Nike taps Walmart veteran to help drive comeback
• Positive Sentiment: Some valuation measures suggest NKE shares may be undervalued after the prolonged decline. However, discounted-cash-flow analysis indicates the stock may be closer to fairly valued, limiting the strength of the bullish argument. Nike stock valuation analysis
• Positive Sentiment: Recent insider activity includes purchases by CEO Elliott Hill and other executives, signaling that some insiders view the depressed share price as attractive. Institutional positioning was mixed, with some large investors adding shares while others reduced holdings. Nike stock opinions and trading activity
• Neutral Sentiment: NIKE’s latest quarterly results exceeded earnings and revenue estimates, but revenue still declined year over year, reinforcing the view that the company’s recovery remains incomplete.
• Negative Sentiment: Truist downgraded NKE to Hold after weakness at retail partner Dick’s Sporting Goods raised concerns about soft traffic, muted consumer demand and a potentially longer turnaround. Analysts have also lowered price targets, citing China-related challenges. Why Nike stock is falling
• Negative Sentiment: Commentary highlights continued market-share erosion, legacy inventory issues and negative reactions to some upcoming Air Jordan designs, raising questions about NIKE’s product innovation and brand relevance. Nike performance struggles
• Negative Sentiment: Investors are also assessing dividend sustainability: NIKE’s payout growth could become more difficult to maintain if earnings do not improve materially during the turnaround. Nike dividend sustainability

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Matthew Friend sold 2,463 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $41.60, for a total value of $102,460.80. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 82,165 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,418,064. This represents a 2.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Philip Mccartney sold 17,398 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.18, for a total value of $803,439.64. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 53,133 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,453,681.94. This represents a 24.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders have sold 26,142 shares of company stock worth $1,169,380 over the last three months. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently issued reports on NKE shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their target price on shares of NIKE from $43.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, July 17th. China Renaissance dropped their price target on NIKE from $50.30 to $47.30 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 2nd. Piper Sandler reduced their price objective on NIKE from $50.00 to $45.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 1st. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $68.00 price objective (down from $72.00) on shares of NIKE in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group set a $47.00 price objective on NIKE and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Buy rating, twenty have given a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $52.94.

NIKE 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).