The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Sells 48,242 Shares of NIKE, Inc. $NKE

Key Points

• The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company cut its NIKE stake by 7.1%, selling 48,242 shares and retaining 629,005 shares valued at approximately $33.2 million. Institutional investors own 64.25% of NIKE.
• Analyst sentiment remains cautious, with a consensus “Hold” rating and an average price target of $53.74; several firms recently lowered their targets, including Barclays to $52.
• NIKE shares opened at $41.86, near their 52-week low, despite the company beating quarterly earnings and revenue estimates. NIKE also maintains a quarterly dividend of $0.41 per share, representing a 3.9% yield.

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company reduced its stake in NIKE, Inc. (NYSE:NKE - Free Report) by 7.1% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 629,005 shares of the footwear maker's stock after selling 48,242 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company's holdings in NIKE were worth $33,223,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Scarborough Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of NIKE during the 1st quarter worth about $25,000. Cornerstone Financial Management LLC acquired a new stake in NIKE during the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. Sankala Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of NIKE during the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of NIKE by 108.4% during the first quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 548 shares of the footwear maker's stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 285 shares during the period. Finally, J.Safra Asset Management Corp acquired a new position in shares of NIKE in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. 64.25% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently weighed in on the company. Barclays dropped their price target on NIKE from $67.00 to $52.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 1st. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of NIKE in a report on Thursday, June 4th. China Renaissance lowered their price objective on NIKE from $50.30 to $47.30 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 2nd. UBS Group set a $48.00 target price on NIKE and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 1st. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane reissued an "underperform" rating on shares of NIKE in a research report on Wednesday, July 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Buy rating, nineteen have issued a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $53.74.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Philip Mccartney sold 17,398 shares of NIKE stock in a transaction on Friday, June 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $46.18, for a total transaction of $803,439.64. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 53,133 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,453,681.94. The trade was a 24.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders own 1.10% of the company's stock.

NIKE Stock Performance

Shares of NIKE stock opened at $41.86 on Friday. The company's 50 day moving average price is $43.56 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $50.36. The firm has a market capitalization of $62.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.03, a P/E/G ratio of 1.88 and a beta of 1.12. NIKE, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $40.00 and a fifty-two week high of $80.17. 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 - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, June 30th. The footwear maker reported $0.20 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 company had revenue of $10.97 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $10.85 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.14 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was down 1.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that NIKE, Inc. will post 1.74 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

NIKE Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 1st were paid a dividend of $0.41 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 1st. This represents a $1.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.9%. NIKE's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 78.47%.

About NIKE

Nike, Inc NYSE: NKE is a global designer, marketer and distributor of athletic footwear, apparel, equipment and accessories. Founded in 1964 as Blue Ribbon Sports by Phil Knight and Bill Bowerman and renamed Nike in 1971, the company is headquartered near Beaverton, Oregon. Nike develops and commercializes products across performance and lifestyle categories for sports including running, basketball, soccer and training, and is known for signature technologies and design-driven product lines.

The company markets products under several primary brands, including Nike, Jordan and Converse, and sells through a combination of wholesale relationships, branded retail stores and direct-to-consumer channels such as company-operated stores and digital platforms (e.g., Nike.com and mobile apps).

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