NIKE’s (NKE) Hold Rating Reiterated at Needham & Company LLC

Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed their hold rating on shares of NIKE (NYSE:NKE) in a research note published on Friday morning,Benzinga reports.

Several other research firms also recently commented on NKE. Rothschild & Co Redburn lowered their target price on shares of NIKE from $45.00 to $37.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 17th. Robert W. Baird cut their target price on shares of NIKE from $44.00 to $36.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $30.00 price target (down from $38.00) on shares of NIKE in a report on Friday. Raymond James Financial reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of NIKE in a research note on Tuesday, September 29th. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of NIKE from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 19th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating, twenty-two have issued a Hold rating and eight have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $42.12.

NIKE Stock Up 0.0%

Shares of NKE opened at $33.88 on Friday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $38.88 and its 200 day moving average is $42.79. The company has a market capitalization of $50.27 billion, a PE ratio of 16.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.09. NIKE has a 12-month low of $31.97 and a 12-month high of $74.78. 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 posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 1st. The footwear maker reported $0.48 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.43 by $0.05. NIKE had a return on equity of 15.94% and a net margin of 6.74%.The business had revenue of $11.21 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.32 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.49 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. NIKE has set its FY 2027 guidance at 1.150-1.350 EPS. Research analysts expect that NIKE will post 1.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

NIKE Announces Dividend

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

Insider Buying and Selling at NIKE

In other NIKE news, COO Venkatesh Alagirisamy sold 3,671 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $37.59, for a total transaction of $137,992.89. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 104,862 shares in the company, valued at $3,941,762.58. This trade represents a 3.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Amy Montagne sold 4,867 shares of NIKE stock in a transaction on Friday, August 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.05, for a total transaction of $204,657.35. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 57,436 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,415,183.80. The trade was a 7.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 14,974 shares of company stock worth $600,126. Company insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of NIKE

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. TCM Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of NIKE by 1.8% in the 4th quarter. TCM Advisors LLC now owns 11,218 shares of the footwear maker’s stock worth $715,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the period. FAS Wealth Partners Inc. increased its stake in shares of NIKE by 4.2% during the first quarter. FAS Wealth Partners Inc. now owns 6,109 shares of the footwear maker’s stock valued at $323,000 after buying an additional 249 shares during the period. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of NIKE by 34.6% in the second quarter. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC now owns 989 shares of the footwear maker’s stock valued at $41,000 after acquiring an additional 254 shares in the last quarter. Midwest Professional Planners LTD. raised its holdings in shares of NIKE by 1.5% in the first quarter. Midwest Professional Planners LTD. now owns 17,904 shares of the footwear maker’s stock valued at $946,000 after acquiring an additional 266 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Advance Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in NIKE by 7.1% in the first quarter. Advance Capital Management Inc. now owns 4,203 shares of the footwear maker’s stock worth $222,000 after acquiring an additional 279 shares during the period. 64.25% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Key NIKE News

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.

About NIKE

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.