NIKE (NYSE:NKE) Upgraded at Freedom Broker

Freedom Broker upgraded shares of NIKE (NYSE:NKE) from a sell rating to a buy rating in a research note issued to investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. They currently have $51.00 target price on the footwear maker’s stock, down from their previous target price of $54.00.

A number of other brokerages have also issued reports on NKE. Jefferies Financial Group set a $60.00 target price on shares of NIKE in a research report on Friday. Morgan Stanley set a $27.00 price target on NIKE and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Friday. Barclays reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $48.00 price target (down from $52.00) on shares of NIKE in a research note on Wednesday, September 23rd. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $45.00 price objective on shares of NIKE in a research report on Friday. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded NIKE from a “sell (d)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research note on Friday, July 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating, twenty-two have given a Hold rating and eight have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, NIKE presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $42.12.

NIKE Price Performance

NYSE:NKE opened at $33.88 on Friday. NIKE has a 12-month low of $31.97 and a 12-month high of $74.78. The firm has a market cap of $50.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.09. The company’s 50-day moving average is $38.88 and its two-hundred day moving average is $42.79. The company has a current ratio of 2.07, a quick ratio of 1.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39.

NIKE (NYSE:NKE) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 1st. The footwear maker reported $0.48 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.43 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $11.21 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.32 billion. NIKE had a net margin of 6.74% and a return on equity of 15.94%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.49 earnings per share. NIKE has set its FY 2027 guidance at 1.150-1.350 EPS. Research analysts expect that NIKE will post 1.46 EPS for the current year.

NIKE Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 1st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 1st were issued a $0.41 dividend. This represents a $1.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.8%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 1st. NIKE’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 78.85%.

Insider Activity at NIKE

In related news, CFO Matthew Friend sold 2,463 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 82,165 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,418,064. This trade represents a 2.91% decrease in their position. 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 2,559 shares of NIKE stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $37.59, for a total value of $96,192.81. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 78,121 shares in the company, valued at $2,936,568.39. The trade was a 3.17% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 14,974 shares of company stock worth $600,126 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On NIKE

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Confluence Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of NIKE by 873.8% in the 3rd quarter. Confluence Investment Management LLC now owns 2,720,616 shares of the footwear maker’s stock valued at $96,310,000 after purchasing an additional 2,441,233 shares in the last quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in NIKE by 8.5% in the second quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 106,883 shares of the footwear maker’s stock valued at $4,388,000 after buying an additional 8,338 shares during the period. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. raised its holdings in NIKE by 214.0% in the second quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 32,596 shares of the footwear maker’s stock valued at $1,338,000 after buying an additional 22,215 shares during the period. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in NIKE by 98.4% during the second quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,202,581 shares of the footwear maker’s stock valued at $90,416,000 after buying an additional 1,092,282 shares in the last quarter. Finally, State Street Corp lifted its position in NIKE by 6.8% during the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 63,598,789 shares of the footwear maker’s stock valued at $2,636,104,000 after buying an additional 4,052,428 shares in the last quarter. 64.25% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

NIKE News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting NIKE this week:

• Positive Sentiment: NIKE reported fiscal Q1 EPS of $0.48, above the $0.43 analyst consensus. The company also retains a strong balance sheet, with approximately $8.4 billion in cash and short-term investments, while its dividend yield is approaching 5%. NIKE Posts Earnings Results
• Positive Sentiment: Some analysts see the selloff as an opportunity. Freedom Broker upgraded NKE from “sell” to “buy” with a $51 price target, while BTIG maintained a “buy” rating with a $50 target. Bernstein called the stock “de-risked” following the earnings release. Bernstein says Nike stock is de-risked
• Neutral Sentiment: NIKE is launching the Pace restructuring program, targeting approximately $2.5 billion in savings. Management said the plan is intended to simplify operations and support performance categories, but implementation will include further job cuts likely extending into 2027. NIKE fiscal 2027 first-quarter results
• Neutral Sentiment: The company’s dividend appears supported by its liquidity and history of 24 consecutive years of increases, although a higher yield also reflects the stock’s substantial decline and investors’ concerns about future earnings.
• Negative Sentiment: Fiscal Q1 revenue fell 4.3% year over year to $11.21 billion, below the $11.32 billion consensus estimate. Weakness in Greater China, Sportswear and Jordan continued to weigh on sales, while competition and changing consumer preferences are pressuring the brand. Nike plans more job cuts and forecasts revenue drop
• Negative Sentiment: Management expects fiscal 2027 revenue to decline by a high-single-digit percentage and provided EPS guidance of $1.15–$1.35, well below the roughly $1.66 analyst consensus. The outlook suggests Nike’s turnaround may take longer and be more costly than investors expected. Nike shares fall after weak outlook and layoffs
• Negative Sentiment: Several firms reduced price targets, including Citi to $32 and JPMorgan to $33, with neutral or underweight ratings. Zacks also placed NKE on its Strong Sell list, reinforcing concerns about margin pressure, China weakness and delayed recovery.

NIKE Company Profile

NIKE, Inc is a global sportswear company that designs, develops, markets and sells athletic footwear, apparel, equipment, accessories and related services. Its products are marketed under the NIKE, Jordan and Converse brands and are used across a broad range of sports and lifestyle activities, including running, basketball, football, training and outdoor pursuits.

The company distributes its products through a combination of wholesale partners, NIKE-owned retail stores and digital platforms.