Jefferies Financial Group Issues Pessimistic Forecast for NIKE (NYSE:NKE) Stock Price

Key Points

• Jefferies Financial Group cut its price target on NIKE from $90 to $75, while keeping a buy rating on the stock.
• Despite the reduction, Jefferies still sees significant upside from the prior close, but the broader analyst community remains cautious with a consensus Hold rating and an average target of $56.16.
• NIKE shares were up 3.6% to $42.52 in Wednesday trading, and recent earnings showed the company beat EPS and revenue estimates, even as growth remains modest and multiple firms have trimmed price targets.

NIKE (NYSE:NKE - Get Free Report) had its price objective decreased by Jefferies Financial Group from $90.00 to $75.00 in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday,MarketScreener reports. The firm currently has a "buy" rating on the footwear maker's stock. Jefferies Financial Group's price objective indicates a potential upside of 76.40% from the stock's previous close.

Other analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on NIKE from $45.00 to $40.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. CICC Research lowered NIKE from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating and cut their price objective for the company from $69.00 to $58.00 in a report on Monday, April 6th. Needham & Company LLC restated a "hold" rating on shares of NIKE in a research report on Thursday, June 4th. Piper Sandler cut their target price on shares of NIKE from $50.00 to $45.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, DZ Bank reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of NIKE in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Fourteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nineteen have given a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, NIKE has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $56.16.

NIKE Stock Up 3.6%

NYSE NKE traded up $1.47 on Wednesday, hitting $42.52. 15,442,622 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 20,736,977. NIKE has a twelve month low of $40.00 and a twelve month high of $80.17. The company has a current ratio of 2.14, a quick ratio of 1.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50. The company has a market capitalization of $62.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.12. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $44.01 and a 200 day moving average of $53.56.

NIKE (NYSE:NKE - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, March 31st. The footwear maker reported $0.35 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.29 by $0.06. NIKE had a return on equity of 16.41% and a net margin of 4.84%.The company had revenue of $11.28 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.23 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.54 earnings per share. NIKE's quarterly revenue was up .1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts expect that NIKE will post 1.49 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Timothy D. Cook purchased 25,000 shares of NIKE stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 10th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $42.43 per share, with a total value of $1,060,750.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 130,480 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,536,266.40. This trade represents a 23.70% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Elliott Hill purchased 23,660 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, April 13th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $42.27 per share, for a total transaction of $1,000,108.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 265,247 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,211,990.69. This trade represents a 9.79% increase in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders bought 64,441 shares of company stock valued at $2,734,204 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.80% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On NIKE

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of NKE. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of NIKE by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 116,993,541 shares of the footwear maker's stock valued at $7,453,658,000 after buying an additional 1,702,342 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its position in NIKE by 2.2% in the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 59,315,606 shares of the footwear maker's stock worth $3,802,807,000 after purchasing an additional 1,275,494 shares in the last quarter. Capital World Investors lifted its stake in NIKE by 16.2% during the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 49,069,951 shares of the footwear maker's stock worth $3,126,246,000 after purchasing an additional 6,830,938 shares during the period. J. Stern & Co. LLP boosted its holdings in NIKE by 49,010.4% during the fourth quarter. J. Stern & Co. LLP now owns 48,054,542 shares of the footwear maker's stock valued at $3,061,555,000 after purchasing an additional 47,956,692 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of NIKE by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 26,442,879 shares of the footwear maker's stock valued at $1,677,251,000 after purchasing an additional 233,925 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 64.25% of the company's stock.

NIKE News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting NIKE this week:

• Positive Sentiment: NIKE beat Wall Street’s Q4 EPS and revenue estimates, with higher gross and operating profit helped by better margins and a tariff refund. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Several analysts still see upside from current levels, including BTIG’s reiterated Buy and Barclays’ Overweight rating, even after multiple price-target cuts. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Management is prioritizing margin recovery, inventory discipline, and sport-led execution, which may help the medium-term turnaround but does not change the near-term sales slowdown. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: China remains a major headwind, with sales there down about 12%, and broader demand remains weak in key regions such as Greater China and Europe. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: NIKE lowered investor expectations with a cautious outlook, saying the turnaround is taking longer and warning that sales are still struggling, which is driving the stock lower in premarket trading. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Multiple brokerages cut price targets after the report, including JPMorgan, Piper Sandler, Bank of America, Barclays, and Wells Fargo, reinforcing caution around the stock. Article Title

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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