NIKE (NYSE:NKE) Upgraded to "Buy" at TD Cowen

Key Points

• NIKE has been upgraded by TD Cowen from a "hold" to a "buy" rating, with a new price target of $85.00, indicating a potential upside of 15.49%.
• The company reported earnings per share of $0.14 for the last quarter, surpassing expectations of $0.12, although quarterly revenue is down 11.9% year-over-year.
• Currently, there are three Strong Buy ratings, nineteen Buy ratings, and twelve Hold ratings from various analysts, reflecting overall confidence in NIKE's stock.

NIKE (NYSE:NKE - Get Free Report) was upgraded by investment analysts at TD Cowen from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report released on Wednesday, Marketbeat reports. The firm currently has a $85.00 price objective on the footwear maker's stock, up from their prior price objective of $62.00. TD Cowen's target price suggests a potential upside of 15.49% from the stock's current price.

Several other brokerages also recently issued reports on NKE. Barclays upped their price target on shares of NIKE from $53.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, June 27th. Argus upgraded NIKE to a "buy" rating in a report on Sunday, July 6th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a "buy" rating and issued a $115.00 price objective on shares of NIKE in a report on Friday, August 22nd. UBS Group initiated coverage on NIKE in a report on Sunday, July 6th. They issued a "buy" rating for the company. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group restated a "market perform" rating and issued a $70.00 price objective on shares of NIKE in a report on Friday, June 27th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have given a Buy rating and twelve have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, NIKE currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $78.67.

NIKE Trading Down 0.7%

Shares of NKE stock opened at $73.60 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 2.21, a quick ratio of 1.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. The stock has a market cap of $108.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.69 and a beta of 1.24. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $75.54 and a 200 day simple moving average of $67.87. NIKE has a 1 year low of $52.28 and a 1 year high of $90.62.

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On NIKE

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Mitchell Mcleod Pugh & Williams Inc. increased its stake in shares of NIKE by 1.0% during the 2nd quarter. Mitchell Mcleod Pugh & Williams Inc. now owns 14,176 shares of the footwear maker's stock worth $1,007,000 after purchasing an additional 134 shares during the last quarter. Main Street Financial Solutions LLC increased its stake in shares of NIKE by 4.2% during the 2nd quarter. Main Street Financial Solutions LLC now owns 3,441 shares of the footwear maker's stock worth $244,000 after purchasing an additional 139 shares during the last quarter. Caldwell Sutter Capital Inc. increased its stake in shares of NIKE by 6.3% during the 2nd quarter. Caldwell Sutter Capital Inc. now owns 2,390 shares of the footwear maker's stock worth $170,000 after purchasing an additional 142 shares during the last quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC increased its stake in shares of NIKE by 10.1% during the 2nd quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 1,575 shares of the footwear maker's stock worth $120,000 after purchasing an additional 145 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Westmount Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of NIKE by 2.9% during the 2nd quarter. Westmount Partners LLC now owns 5,165 shares of the footwear maker's stock worth $367,000 after purchasing an additional 146 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 64.25% of the company's stock.

About NIKE

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.

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