Diversified Enterprises LLC Lowers Stock Holdings in NIKE, Inc. (NYSE:NKE)

Diversified Enterprises LLC trimmed its position in NIKE, Inc. (NYSE:NKE) by 8.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,952 shares of the footwear maker’s stock after selling 349 shares during the quarter. Diversified Enterprises LLC’s holdings in NIKE were worth $299,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Heck Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of NIKE in the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Caitlin John LLC lifted its holdings in shares of NIKE by 117.0% in the fourth quarter. Caitlin John LLC now owns 371 shares of the footwear maker’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Teachers Insurance & Annuity Association of America purchased a new stake in shares of NIKE in the third quarter worth about $30,000. Roxbury Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of NIKE in the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Finally, LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA lifted its holdings in shares of NIKE by 110.5% in the fourth quarter. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA now owns 400 shares of the footwear maker’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 210 shares in the last quarter. 64.25% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

NIKE Stock Performance

NYSE:NKE opened at $71.72 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $106.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 1.02. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $74.68 and its 200 day simple moving average is $77.81. NIKE, Inc. has a twelve month low of $68.62 and a twelve month high of $101.92. The company has a quick ratio of 1.51, a current ratio of 2.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57.

NIKE (NYSE:NKE) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, December 19th. The footwear maker reported $0.78 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.63 by $0.15. The business had revenue of $12.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $12.11 billion. NIKE had a net margin of 9.98% and a return on equity of 36.99%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 7.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.03 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that NIKE, Inc. will post 2.05 EPS for the current year.

NIKE Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be given a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.23%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 3rd. NIKE’s dividend payout ratio is currently 49.38%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of NIKE from $74.00 to $72.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their target price on shares of NIKE from $79.00 to $75.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, December 20th. Bank of America lowered their target price on shares of NIKE from $95.00 to $90.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, December 20th. UBS Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $73.00 target price on shares of NIKE in a research note on Thursday, December 26th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $84.00 target price on shares of NIKE in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Fourteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $89.69.

Insider Buying and Selling at NIKE

In related news, Director John W. Rogers, Jr. purchased 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 27th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $76.65 per share, with a total value of $191,625.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 34,403 shares in the company, valued at $2,636,989.95. This trade represents a 7.84 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Chairman Mark G. Parker sold 169,732 shares of NIKE stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.83, for a total value of $12,361,581.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 896,632 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $65,301,708.56. This represents a 15.92 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

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.