NIKE (NYSE:NKE) Given "Buy" Rating at Sanford C. Bernstein

Key Points

• Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed its Buy rating on Nike, even as several other analysts trimmed price targets and the overall consensus remains Hold with a $62.04 target price.
• Nike shares were trading near $43.11, close to their 52-week low of $42.09, while the stock has fallen well below its 50-day and 200-day moving averages.
• The company recently beat earnings expectations, reporting $0.35 EPS on $11.28 billion in revenue, and recent insider purchases by the director and CEO suggest internal confidence in the stock.

NIKE (NYSE:NKE - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "buy" rating restated by equities researchers at Sanford C. Bernstein in a note issued to investors on Monday,MarketScreener reports.

A number of other research analysts have also weighed in on NKE. Barclays dropped their price objective on NIKE from $73.00 to $67.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 1st. KeyCorp lowered their price target on shares of NIKE from $90.00 to $75.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Guggenheim cut their price target on shares of NIKE from $77.00 to $74.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 1st. HSBC downgraded shares of NIKE from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $90.00 to $48.00 in a report on Monday, April 13th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company set a $45.00 target price on shares of NIKE and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday. Sixteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eighteen have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $62.04.

NIKE Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:NKE opened at $43.11 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.45, a current ratio of 2.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50. The company has a market cap of $63.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.70, a PEG ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 1.12. NIKE has a 52 week low of $42.09 and a 52 week high of $80.17. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $50.16 and a 200 day moving average price of $59.14.

NIKE (NYSE:NKE - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, March 31st. The footwear maker reported $0.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.29 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $11.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $11.23 billion. NIKE had a return on equity of 16.41% and a net margin of 4.84%.The firm's quarterly revenue was up .1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.54 EPS. Research analysts predict that NIKE will post 1.51 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at NIKE

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On NIKE

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Oslo Pensjonsforsikring AS purchased a new position in NIKE in the 1st quarter valued at about $123,000. Andra AP fonden boosted its stake in shares of NIKE by 1,731.4% during the 1st quarter. Andra AP fonden now owns 234,417 shares of the footwear maker's stock worth $12,382,000 after purchasing an additional 221,617 shares during the last quarter. Glenview Trust Co grew its holdings in shares of NIKE by 7.6% during the first quarter. Glenview Trust Co now owns 164,075 shares of the footwear maker's stock worth $8,666,000 after buying an additional 11,655 shares in the last quarter. Leith Wheeler Investment Counsel Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of NIKE by 4.2% during the first quarter. Leith Wheeler Investment Counsel Ltd. now owns 324,568 shares of the footwear maker's stock worth $17,144,000 after buying an additional 13,072 shares in the last quarter. Finally, AlTi Global Inc. raised its position in shares of NIKE by 445.0% in the first quarter. AlTi Global Inc. now owns 34,024 shares of the footwear maker's stock valued at $1,797,000 after buying an additional 27,781 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 64.25% of the company's stock.

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).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.