NIKE, Inc. $NKE Shares Acquired by Baird Financial Group Inc.

Key Points

• Baird Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in NIKE, Inc. by 9.6% in the first quarter, acquiring an additional 36,724 shares to total 418,675 shares valued at approximately $26.6 million.
• NIKE's stock has received positive attention from analysts, with Wells Fargo and Goldman Sachs raising their price targets to $60 and $81 respectively, reflecting a generally optimistic outlook.
• The company has declared a quarterly dividend of $0.40 per share, set to be paid on October 1st, translating to a 2.1% yield for investors.

Baird Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of NIKE, Inc. (NYSE:NKE - Free Report) by 9.6% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 418,675 shares of the footwear maker's stock after buying an additional 36,724 shares during the quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc.'s holdings in NIKE were worth $26,577,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of NKE. Stone House Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of NIKE during the 1st quarter valued at about $25,000. Heck Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of NIKE during the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Roxbury Financial LLC raised its holdings in shares of NIKE by 52.1% during the 1st quarter. Roxbury Financial LLC now owns 587 shares of the footwear maker's stock valued at $37,000 after buying an additional 201 shares during the period. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of NIKE during the 1st quarter valued at about $37,000. Finally, Putney Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of NIKE during the 4th quarter valued at about $40,000. 64.25% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at NIKE

In other news, Chairman Mark G. Parker sold 110,000 shares of NIKE stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.29, for a total value of $7,951,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman owned 842,361 shares in the company, valued at approximately $60,894,276.69. This trade represents a 11.55% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.80% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. Wall Street Zen downgraded NIKE from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Friday, June 27th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a "buy" rating and set a $115.00 price objective on shares of NIKE in a report on Friday, August 22nd. Zacks Research upgraded NIKE from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 26th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on NIKE from $61.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, June 27th. Finally, Hsbc Global Res upgraded NIKE from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Friday, June 27th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have assigned a Buy rating and thirteen have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, NIKE currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $78.22.

NIKE Stock Performance

Shares of NKE traded up $0.40 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $74.69. The stock had a trading volume of 7,465,443 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,412,580. The company has a market cap of $110.32 billion, a PE ratio of 34.58, a PEG ratio of 2.81 and a beta of 1.24. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $75.19 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $67.98. The company has a quick ratio of 1.50, a current ratio of 2.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. NIKE, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $52.28 and a fifty-two week high of $90.62.

NIKE (NYSE:NKE - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, June 26th. The footwear maker reported $0.14 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.12 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $11.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.69 billion. NIKE had a return on equity of 23.33% and a net margin of 6.95%.The business's revenue was down 11.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.99 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that NIKE, Inc. will post 2.05 earnings per share for the current year.

NIKE Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 1st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 2nd will be given a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 2nd. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.1%. NIKE's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 74.07%.

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.