Asahi Life Asset Management CO. LTD. Sells 427 Shares of NIKE, Inc. (NYSE:NKE)

Asahi Life Asset Management CO. LTD. lowered its position in NIKE, Inc. (NYSE:NKE) by 4.6% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 8,916 shares of the footwear maker’s stock after selling 427 shares during the period. Asahi Life Asset Management CO. LTD.’s holdings in NIKE were worth $675,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. JNBA Financial Advisors boosted its stake in NIKE by 1.3% in the 4th quarter. JNBA Financial Advisors now owns 10,045 shares of the footwear maker’s stock worth $760,000 after purchasing an additional 131 shares in the last quarter. Frisch Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in NIKE by 4.7% in the third quarter. Frisch Financial Group Inc. now owns 3,036 shares of the footwear maker’s stock worth $269,000 after buying an additional 136 shares during the last quarter. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV lifted its stake in shares of NIKE by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV now owns 20,446 shares of the footwear maker’s stock worth $1,547,000 after buying an additional 136 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in shares of NIKE by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 15,014 shares of the footwear maker’s stock valued at $1,136,000 after buying an additional 150 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Game Plan Financial Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of NIKE by 11.1% during the fourth quarter. Game Plan Financial Advisors LLC now owns 1,500 shares of the footwear maker’s stock valued at $114,000 after acquiring an additional 150 shares in the last quarter. 64.25% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

NIKE Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE NKE opened at $79.43 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $117.49 billion, a PE ratio of 24.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 1.01. NIKE, Inc. has a 1 year low of $68.62 and a 1 year high of $105.57. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $74.64 and a 200-day moving average price of $78.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 2.22 and a quick ratio of 1.51.

NIKE (NYSE:NKE) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, December 19th. The footwear maker reported $0.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.63 by $0.15. NIKE had a return on equity of 36.99% and a net margin of 9.98%. The business had revenue of $12.35 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $12.11 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.03 EPS. NIKE’s revenue for the quarter was down 7.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that NIKE, Inc. will post 2.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

NIKE Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be paid a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.01%. NIKE’s payout ratio is 49.38%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director John W. Rogers, Jr. acquired 2,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, December 27th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $76.65 per share, with a total value of $191,625.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 34,403 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,636,989.95. This trade represents a 7.84 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available 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 sale, the chairman now directly owns 896,632 shares in the company, valued at $65,301,708.56. This trade represents a 15.92 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently issued reports on NKE. UBS Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $73.00 price objective on shares of NIKE in a research report on Thursday, December 26th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on NIKE from $95.00 to $92.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, December 16th. DA Davidson upgraded shares of NIKE to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 23rd. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of NIKE from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $75.00 to $115.00 in a research note on Monday, February 24th. Finally, TD Cowen lowered their price objective on shares of NIKE from $78.00 to $73.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, November 18th. Fourteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $89.77.

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.