Lazard Freres Gestion S.A.S. Has $44.08 Million Stake in NIKE, Inc. (NYSE:NKE)

Key Points

• Lazard Freres Gestion S.A.S. reduced its stake in NIKE, Inc. by 10.3%, bringing their total holdings to 694,454 shares valued at approximately $44.08 million.
• NIKE reported $0.14 earnings per share in its latest quarterly results, exceeding expectations, but its revenue decreased by 11.9% year-over-year.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.40 per share, reflecting a 2.10% yield and a payout ratio of 74.07%.

Lazard Freres Gestion S.A.S. reduced its position in NIKE, Inc. (NYSE:NKE - Free Report) by 10.3% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 694,454 shares of the footwear maker's stock after selling 79,343 shares during the period. Lazard Freres Gestion S.A.S.'s holdings in NIKE were worth $44,083,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Heck Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of NIKE during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. EnRich Financial Partners LLC raised its position in NIKE by 196.4% during the 4th quarter. EnRich Financial Partners LLC now owns 412 shares of the footwear maker's stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 273 shares during the last quarter. Roxbury Financial LLC lifted its stake in shares of NIKE by 52.1% in the 1st quarter. Roxbury Financial LLC now owns 587 shares of the footwear maker's stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 201 shares during the period. Ritter Daniher Financial Advisory LLC DE boosted its holdings in shares of NIKE by 95.1% in the fourth quarter. Ritter Daniher Financial Advisory LLC DE now owns 513 shares of the footwear maker's stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 250 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Putney Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in NIKE in the fourth quarter valued at about $40,000. 64.25% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the company. Berenberg Bank initiated coverage on NIKE in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. They issued a "hold" rating and a $58.00 target price for the company. Bank of America upped their price objective on NIKE from $80.00 to $84.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, June 27th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their target price on shares of NIKE from $75.00 to $64.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. Evercore ISI decreased their price target on NIKE from $97.00 to $75.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, June 24th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group reiterated a "market perform" rating and issued a $70.00 price target on shares of NIKE in a report on Friday, June 27th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have assigned a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $78.22.

NIKE Trading Down 2.4%

NKE stock traded down $1.84 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $74.84. The stock had a trading volume of 8,735,993 shares, compared to its average volume of 17,472,594. The firm has a market cap of $110.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.68, a PEG ratio of 2.88 and a beta of 1.25. NIKE, Inc. has a twelve month low of $52.28 and a twelve month high of $90.62. The company has a quick ratio of 1.50, a current ratio of 2.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $67.80 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $67.49.

NIKE (NYSE:NKE - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, June 26th. The footwear maker reported $0.14 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.12 by $0.02. NIKE had a return on equity of 23.33% and a net margin of 6.95%. The business had revenue of $11.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $10.69 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.99 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 11.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts expect that NIKE, Inc. will post 2.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Chairman Mark G. Parker sold 110,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.29, for a total transaction of $7,951,900.00. Following the sale, the chairman owned 842,361 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $60,894,276.69. This trade represents a 11.55% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.80% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.