Sanford C. Bernstein Lowers NIKE (NYSE:NKE) Price Target to $109.00

NIKE (NYSE:NKE) had its price target cut by Sanford C. Bernstein from $112.00 to $109.00 in a report published on Thursday, Benzinga reports. They currently have an outperform rating on the footwear maker’s stock.

A number of other research analysts also recently weighed in on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price target on shares of NIKE from $118.00 to $105.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a report on Friday, June 28th. Oppenheimer restated an outperform rating and set a $120.00 target price on shares of NIKE in a report on Friday, June 28th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on NIKE from $88.00 to $79.00 and set a hold rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 26th. Barclays increased their price objective on NIKE from $80.00 to $84.00 and gave the company an equal weight rating in a report on Wednesday, September 18th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reduced their target price on NIKE from $90.00 to $80.00 in a report on Friday, July 12th. Fifteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $96.15.

NIKE Price Performance

NYSE:NKE opened at $86.52 on Thursday. NIKE has a 52-week low of $70.75 and a 52-week high of $123.39. The company has a quick ratio of 1.69, a current ratio of 2.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. The firm has a market cap of $130.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.20, a PEG ratio of 2.08 and a beta of 1.02. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $78.11 and its 200 day moving average price is $86.99.

NIKE (NYSE:NKE) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, June 27th. The footwear maker reported $1.01 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.85 by $0.16. NIKE had a return on equity of 42.63% and a net margin of 11.10%. The firm had revenue of $12.60 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $12.86 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.66 EPS. NIKE’s revenue was down 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that NIKE will post 3.06 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

NIKE Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 1st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 3rd will be issued a dividend of $0.37 per share. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.71%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 3rd. NIKE’s payout ratio is currently 39.68%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other NIKE news, Chairman Mark G. Parker sold 52,487 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $78.00, for a total value of $4,093,986.00. Following the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 1,031,226 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $80,435,628. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other NIKE news, Chairman Mark G. Parker sold 52,487 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $78.00, for a total transaction of $4,093,986.00. Following the sale, the chairman now owns 1,031,226 shares in the company, valued at approximately $80,435,628. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Robert Holmes Swan acquired 2,941 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 28th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $77.02 per share, for a total transaction of $226,515.82. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 20,946 shares in the company, valued at $1,613,260.92. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On NIKE

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in NKE. Cim LLC purchased a new position in shares of NIKE during the 4th quarter worth about $14,275,000. TKG Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in NIKE in the 4th quarter worth about $1,012,000. Spartan Planning & Wealth Management bought a new stake in NIKE in the fourth quarter worth about $182,000. Edmond DE Rothschild Holding S.A. boosted its position in shares of NIKE by 27.9% during the fourth quarter. Edmond DE Rothschild Holding S.A. now owns 113,299 shares of the footwear maker’s stock valued at $12,301,000 after buying an additional 24,686 shares during the period. Finally, Advisors Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of NIKE by 86.0% during the first quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 20,957 shares of the footwear maker’s stock valued at $1,970,000 after buying an additional 9,689 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors 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.