Maryland State Retirement & Pension System Grows Stock Holdings in NIKE, Inc. (NYSE:NKE)

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System raised its stake in shares of NIKE, Inc. (NYSE:NKE) by 1.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 92,580 shares of the footwear maker’s stock after acquiring an additional 986 shares during the period. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System’s holdings in NIKE were worth $10,051,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in NKE. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC grew its position in NIKE by 120.7% in the 4th quarter. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC now owns 256 shares of the footwear maker’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 140 shares during the last quarter. Planned Solutions Inc. purchased a new position in NIKE during the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in NIKE by 134.2% in the third quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 377 shares of the footwear maker’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 216 shares during the period. Stephens Consulting LLC boosted its holdings in NIKE by 160.0% in the 3rd quarter. Stephens Consulting LLC now owns 390 shares of the footwear maker’s stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 240 shares in the last quarter. Finally, OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new position in NIKE during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $37,000. 64.25% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

NKE has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Sanford C. Bernstein decreased their target price on shares of NIKE from $134.00 to $120.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, March 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price target on NIKE from $135.00 to $120.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, March 22nd. Citigroup reduced their price objective on NIKE from $135.00 to $125.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, March 14th. Telsey Advisory Group dropped their price target on NIKE from $140.00 to $120.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, March 18th. Finally, HSBC lowered their price objective on shares of NIKE from $120.00 to $115.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 22nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and twenty have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $116.26.

NIKE Stock Performance

NKE stock traded up $0.33 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $93.69. 4,916,847 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 9,198,151. NIKE, Inc. has a 1-year low of $88.66 and a 1-year high of $127.69. The firm has a market cap of $141.41 billion, a PE ratio of 27.70, a P/E/G ratio of 1.78 and a beta of 1.07. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $95.51 and its 200-day moving average price is $102.97. The company has a quick ratio of 1.89, a current ratio of 2.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63.

NIKE (NYSE:NKE) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, March 21st. The footwear maker reported $0.98 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.69 by $0.29. NIKE had a return on equity of 39.41% and a net margin of 10.14%. The firm had revenue of $12.43 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $12.28 billion. On average, research analysts expect that NIKE, Inc. will post 3.73 EPS for the current fiscal year.

NIKE Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 1st. Investors of record on Monday, June 3rd will be issued a dividend of $0.37 per share. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.58%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 3rd. NIKE’s payout ratio is currently 43.53%.

NIKE Company Profile

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.