Vest Financial LLC Decreases Stock Holdings in NIKE, Inc. (NYSE:NKE)

Vest Financial LLC lowered its position in NIKE, Inc. (NYSE:NKE) by 46.9% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 235,473 shares of the footwear maker’s stock after selling 208,097 shares during the period. Vest Financial LLC’s holdings in NIKE were worth $14,948,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Caitlin John LLC raised its stake in NIKE by 117.0% in the fourth quarter. Caitlin John LLC now owns 371 shares of the footwear maker’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Heck Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of NIKE during the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. Roxbury Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of NIKE in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $30,000. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA boosted its stake in NIKE by 110.5% in the 4th quarter. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA now owns 400 shares of the footwear maker’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 210 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hopwood Financial Services Inc. purchased a new stake in NIKE during the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 64.25% of the company’s stock.

NIKE Stock Performance

NYSE:NKE opened at $62.82 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a quick ratio of 1.51 and a current ratio of 2.22. The stock has a market capitalization of $92.92 billion, a PE ratio of 19.39, a P/E/G ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 1.21. NIKE, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $52.28 and a fifty-two week high of $98.04. The company has a fifty day moving average of $58.86 and a two-hundred day moving average of $69.22.

NIKE (NYSE:NKE) last released its earnings results on Thursday, March 20th. The footwear maker reported $0.54 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.28 by $0.26. The business had revenue of $11.27 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $11.02 billion. NIKE had a net margin of 9.98% and a return on equity of 36.99%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.98 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that NIKE, Inc. will post 2.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

NIKE Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 2nd will be paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 2nd. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.55%. NIKE’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 53.16%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have issued reports on NKE. Telsey Advisory Group decreased their price target on shares of NIKE from $80.00 to $70.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Robert W. Baird reduced their target price on NIKE from $105.00 to $99.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, March 21st. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price target on NIKE from $75.00 to $64.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. UBS Group cut their price objective on NIKE from $73.00 to $66.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, March 21st. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada decreased their target price on NIKE from $66.00 to $65.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 20th. Seventeen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $80.26.

Insider Buying and Selling at NIKE

In other NIKE news, Director Robert Holmes Swan bought 8,600 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, April 4th. The shares were bought at an average price of $58.46 per share, with a total value of $502,756.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 31,983 shares in the company, valued at $1,869,726.18. This trade represents a 36.78% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 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.