Venkatesh Alagirisamy Sells 3,671 Shares of NIKE (NYSE:NKE) Stock

NIKE, Inc. (NYSE:NKE) COO Venkatesh Alagirisamy sold 3,671 shares of NIKE stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 9th. The stock was 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 directly owned 104,862 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,941,762.58. This trade represents a 3.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan.

Venkatesh Alagirisamy also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Wednesday, August 5th, Venkatesh Alagirisamy sold 890 shares of NIKE stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.60, for a total transaction of $37,024.00.

NIKE Stock Down 2.1%

NYSE NKE traded down $0.78 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $36.57. The stock had a trading volume of 29,815,037 shares, compared to its average volume of 21,990,969. NIKE, Inc. has a 1 year low of $36.55 and a 1 year high of $76.97. The stock has a market cap of $54.25 billion, a PE ratio of 17.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $41.34 and a 200 day moving average price of $45.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 1.96 and a quick ratio of 1.36.

NIKE (NYSE:NKE) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, June 30th. The footwear maker reported $0.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.11 by $0.09. NIKE had a return on equity of 16.54% and a net margin of 6.70%.The business had revenue of $10.97 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.85 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.14 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 1.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that NIKE, Inc. will post 1.74 earnings per share for the current year.

NIKE Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 1st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 1st will be issued a dividend of $0.41 per share. This represents a $1.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 1st. NIKE’s dividend payout ratio is presently 78.47%.

Key Stories Impacting NIKE

Here are the key news stories impacting NIKE this week:

• Neutral Sentiment: Shareholders approved an expanded employee stock purchase plan adopted by NIKE’s board in July. The plan could support employee retention, although the potential for additional share issuance may limit its benefit to existing investors. Nike Shareholders Approve Expanded Employee Stock Purchase Plan
• Neutral Sentiment: Some commentary argues that NIKE’s underlying business is not fundamentally broken and that its depressed valuation and dividend yield could appeal to long-term investors, though a turnaround remains necessary. Nike: The Sentiment Is Bleak, But The Underlying Business Is Not Broken
• Negative Sentiment: Morgan Stanley warned that the pain may not be over, citing persistent operating weakness, disappointing share performance and NIKE’s imminent removal from the S&P 100. Morgan Stanley Says the Pain May Not Be Over Yet
• Negative Sentiment: BMO initiated coverage with an Underperform rating, pointing to challenges facing NIKE and the broader athletic-apparel market. The new bearish call adds to pressure on the stock. BMO Says Sell Nike Stock
• Negative Sentiment: NIKE is set to lose its S&P 100 membership after nearly 18 years, a high-profile consequence of its severe decline that could reduce index-related demand and reinforce negative sentiment. Nike Loses Its S&P 100 Membership
• Negative Sentiment: Analysts continue to cite shifting consumer preferences, intense competition and NIKE’s broad product and market exposure as structural challenges, leaving investors concerned that a recovery could take time. Shifting Consumer Preferences Continue to Impact Nike and Lululemon

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Evercore set a $46.00 price objective on NIKE and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 23rd. BNP Paribas Exane reaffirmed an “underperform” rating on shares of NIKE in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $45.00 price target on shares of NIKE in a research note on Tuesday, August 25th. China Renaissance decreased their price objective on shares of NIKE from $50.30 to $47.30 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 2nd. Finally, Guggenheim restated a “buy” rating and set a $60.00 price objective (down from $74.00) on shares of NIKE in a research report on Wednesday, July 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating, twenty have issued a Hold rating and six have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $50.12.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. California State Teachers Retirement System grew its stake in shares of NIKE by 4,052.9% during the 2nd quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 75,611,801 shares of the footwear maker’s stock valued at $3,103,864,000 after purchasing an additional 73,791,103 shares during the period. J. Stern & Co. LLP lifted its stake in shares of NIKE by 49,010.4% in the 4th quarter. J. Stern & Co. LLP now owns 48,054,542 shares of the footwear maker’s stock worth $3,061,555,000 after purchasing an additional 47,956,692 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of NIKE in the 4th quarter worth approximately $829,956,000. Flossbach Von Storch SE purchased a new position in shares of NIKE in the second quarter worth approximately $488,714,000. Finally, Harris Associates L P purchased a new position in shares of NIKE in the second quarter worth approximately $621,525,000. Institutional investors own 64.25% of the company’s stock.

About NIKE

NIKE, Inc is a global athletic footwear, apparel and equipment company headquartered near Beaverton, Oregon. The company designs, develops and markets products under the NIKE, Jordan and Converse brands, serving athletes and consumers across a broad range of sports and lifestyle categories.

NIKE’s offerings include athletic and casual footwear, sportswear, apparel, accessories and athletic equipment. The company distributes its products through company-owned retail stores, digital platforms, wholesale partners and independent distributors.