Yousif Capital Management LLC Lowers Stock Holdings in NIKE, Inc. $NKE

Yousif Capital Management LLC cut its holdings in NIKE, Inc. (NYSE:NKE) by 5.8% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 147,864 shares of the footwear maker’s stock after selling 9,099 shares during the period. Yousif Capital Management LLC’s holdings in NIKE were worth $10,311,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC boosted its holdings in shares of NIKE by 697.5% in the 3rd quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 228,889 shares of the footwear maker’s stock valued at $15,960,000 after purchasing an additional 200,187 shares during the last quarter. Soros Fund Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of NIKE by 33.0% during the 2nd quarter. Soros Fund Management LLC now owns 302,320 shares of the footwear maker’s stock worth $21,477,000 after buying an additional 75,000 shares during the last quarter. Brighton Jones LLC raised its position in shares of NIKE by 54.6% in the 3rd quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 104,791 shares of the footwear maker’s stock worth $7,307,000 after buying an additional 37,019 shares during the period. Soltis Investment Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in NIKE by 238.8% in the second quarter. Soltis Investment Advisors LLC now owns 141,356 shares of the footwear maker’s stock valued at $10,042,000 after acquiring an additional 99,638 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Banco Santander S.A. boosted its holdings in NIKE by 28.3% in the second quarter. Banco Santander S.A. now owns 221,117 shares of the footwear maker’s stock valued at $15,708,000 after acquiring an additional 48,764 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 64.25% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have commented on NKE shares. DZ Bank restated a “buy” rating on shares of NIKE in a research note on Friday, December 19th. Berenberg Bank reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $70.00 target price on shares of NIKE in a report on Friday, December 19th. BTIG Research reissued a “buy” rating and set a $100.00 target price on shares of NIKE in a research report on Friday, December 12th. Cowen raised shares of NIKE from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 10th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein set a $85.00 price objective on shares of NIKE and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-five have issued a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, NIKE presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $78.14.

NIKE Stock Up 0.2%

NYSE NKE opened at $57.35 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $84.77 billion, a PE ratio of 33.73, a P/E/G ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 1.29. NIKE, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $52.28 and a fifty-two week high of $82.44. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $64.64 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $69.41. The company has a quick ratio of 1.40, a current ratio of 2.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50.

NIKE (NYSE:NKE) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, December 18th. The footwear maker reported $0.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.37 by $0.16. NIKE had a net margin of 5.43% and a return on equity of 18.43%. The company had revenue of $12.43 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $12.19 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.78 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that NIKE, Inc. will post 2.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

NIKE Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 2nd. Investors of record on Monday, December 1st will be paid a dividend of $0.41 per share. This is a positive change from NIKE’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 1st. This represents a $1.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.9%. NIKE’s payout ratio is presently 96.47%.

NIKE News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting NIKE this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Two sizeable director purchases: Director Timothy D. Cook bought 50,000 shares (~$2.95M) and Director Robert Holmes Swan acquired 8,691 shares (~$500k). Large insider accumulation is being read as a vote of confidence and helped spark the pre?market rally. Read More. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: High?profile commentary is supporting retail interest — Jim Cramer and other outlets have reiterated a bullish recovery view for Nike, which can attract momentum buying from retail investors. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst notes and sector writeups offer mixed context — some firms maintain constructive ratings while others trim targets; useful background for positioning but not an immediate catalyst. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Comparison pieces highlight valuation gaps in the apparel space, pointing investors toward cheaper alternatives versus Nike; these are more thematic than company?specific catalysts. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Seeking Alpha downgrade to Sell flags structural concerns — unsustainable dividend payout, margin compression, overvaluation, a ~32% drop in net income and a ~17% decline in China sales in the latest quarter. These points amplify downside risk to near?term earnings. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Post?earnings weakness: analysts and technical commentary point to disappointing guidance and China weakness that pushed the stock below key support levels, prompting debate over whether the pullback is a buying opportunity. Read More. Read More.

Insider Transactions at NIKE

In other news, Chairman Mark G. Parker sold 86,078 shares of NIKE stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.80, for a total transaction of $5,577,854.40. Following the sale, the chairman directly owned 647,615 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $41,965,452. The trade was a 11.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Treasure Heinle sold 4,300 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.27, for a total value of $306,461.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 29,396 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,095,052.92. This trade represents a 12.76% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have acquired a total of 74,841 shares of company stock worth $4,451,334 over the last three months. Insiders own 0.80% of the company’s stock.

NIKE Profile

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).