NIKE (NYSE:NKE) Downgraded to Strong Sell Rating by Zacks Research

Zacks Research cut shares of NIKE (NYSE:NKE) from a hold rating to a strong sell rating in a report published on Monday morning,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other research analysts also recently issued reports on the stock. DZ Bank reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of NIKE in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Weiss Ratings raised shares of NIKE from a “sell (d)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. BNP Paribas Exane cut their price objective on shares of NIKE from $35.00 to $23.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 1st. DA Davidson downgraded shares of NIKE from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their price objective for the stock from $72.00 to $46.00 in a research report on Thursday, April 2nd. Finally, China Renaissance cut their price objective on shares of NIKE from $74.60 to $50.30 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 2nd. Sixteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seventeen have issued a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $62.04.

NIKE Trading Down 4.8%

NYSE:NKE opened at $43.72 on Monday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $45.60 and a 200-day simple moving average of $56.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a quick ratio of 1.45 and a current ratio of 2.14. NIKE has a one year low of $41.35 and a one year high of $80.17. The firm has a market cap of $64.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.96, a P/E/G ratio of 1.96 and a beta of 1.12.

NIKE (NYSE:NKE) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 31st. The footwear maker reported $0.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.29 by $0.06. NIKE had a net margin of 4.84% and a return on equity of 16.41%. The firm had revenue of $11.28 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.23 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.54 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up .1% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that NIKE will post 1.51 EPS for the current fiscal year.

NIKE Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 1st will be given a dividend of $0.41 per share. This represents a $1.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 1st. NIKE’s payout ratio is currently 108.61%.

Insider Activity at NIKE

In related news, CEO Elliott Hill bought 23,660 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, April 13th. The shares were bought at an average price of $42.27 per share, with a total value of $1,000,108.20. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 265,247 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,211,990.69. This trade represents a 9.79% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Robert Holmes Swan bought 11,781 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 7th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $42.44 per share, for a total transaction of $499,985.64. Following the transaction, the director owned 55,074 shares in the company, valued at $2,337,340.56. The trade was a 27.21% increase in their position. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Insiders purchased a total of 64,441 shares of company stock worth $2,734,204 in the last quarter. 0.80% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of NIKE

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of NKE. Brighton Jones LLC grew its position in NIKE by 388.5% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 202,411 shares of the footwear maker’s stock worth $15,316,000 after purchasing an additional 160,980 shares during the last quarter. Caxton Associates LLP acquired a new stake in NIKE during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $311,000. United Bank lifted its stake in NIKE by 11.3% during the 2nd quarter. United Bank now owns 17,067 shares of the footwear maker’s stock valued at $1,212,000 after acquiring an additional 1,736 shares during the period. NewEdge Advisors LLC lifted its stake in NIKE by 0.3% during the 2nd quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 64,161 shares of the footwear maker’s stock valued at $4,558,000 after acquiring an additional 197 shares during the period. Finally, CIBC Asset Management Inc lifted its stake in NIKE by 6.5% during the 2nd quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 191,268 shares of the footwear maker’s stock valued at $13,588,000 after acquiring an additional 11,646 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 64.25% of the company’s stock.

About NIKE

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).