NIKE (NYSE:NKE) Upgraded by Dbs Bank to Strong-Buy Rating

Dbs Bank upgraded shares of NIKE (NYSE:NKE) from a hold rating to a strong-buy rating in a report published on Wednesday,Zacks.com reports.

NKE has been the topic of several other reports. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on shares of NIKE from $80.00 to $74.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their target price on shares of NIKE from $82.00 to $80.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of NIKE from $95.00 to $92.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, December 16th. Citigroup downgraded shares of NIKE from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their target price for the company from $102.00 to $72.00 in a report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Robert W. Baird lowered their target price on shares of NIKE from $110.00 to $105.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, December 23rd. Fourteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $89.77.

NIKE Trading Down 0.1 %

Shares of NIKE stock opened at $77.74 on Wednesday. NIKE has a 1 year low of $68.62 and a 1 year high of $102.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a quick ratio of 1.51 and a current ratio of 2.22. The company has a market capitalization of $114.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.99, a PEG ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 1.01. The company’s fifty day moving average is $74.72 and its two-hundred day moving average is $78.25.

NIKE (NYSE:NKE) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, December 19th. The footwear maker reported $0.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.63 by $0.15. NIKE had a net margin of 9.98% and a return on equity of 36.99%. The company had revenue of $12.35 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $12.11 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.03 EPS. NIKE’s revenue for the quarter was down 7.7% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that NIKE will post 2.05 earnings per share for the current year.

NIKE Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be given a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.06%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 3rd. NIKE’s payout ratio is currently 49.38%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director John W. Rogers, Jr. acquired 2,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 34,403 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,636,989.95. This represents a 7.84 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Chairman Mark G. Parker sold 169,732 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.83, for a total transaction of $12,361,581.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 896,632 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $65,301,708.56. This represents a 15.92 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On NIKE

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Heck Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of NIKE in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Caitlin John LLC grew its holdings in NIKE by 117.0% in the fourth quarter. Caitlin John LLC now owns 371 shares of the footwear maker’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the period. Teachers Insurance & Annuity Association of America purchased a new stake in NIKE in the third quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Roxbury Financial LLC purchased a new stake in NIKE in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Finally, LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA grew its holdings in NIKE by 110.5% in the fourth quarter. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA now owns 400 shares of the footwear maker’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 210 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 64.25% of the company’s stock.

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.