The Goldman Sachs Group Issues Positive Forecast for NIKE (NYSE:NKE) Stock Price

NIKE (NYSE:NKE - Get Free Report) had its price target upped by analysts at The Goldman Sachs Group from $72.00 to $81.00 in a note issued to investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a "buy" rating on the footwear maker's stock. The Goldman Sachs Group's price target would suggest a potential upside of 12.06% from the company's previous close.

Several other equities research analysts also recently commented on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of NIKE in a research note on Friday, May 23rd. Citigroup raised their target price on NIKE from $57.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday. Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their price target on NIKE from $66.00 to $65.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, May 20th. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price objective on NIKE from $75.00 to $64.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 10th. Finally, Evercore ISI decreased their target price on NIKE from $97.00 to $75.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday. Fifteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $79.33.

NIKE Stock Up 15.6%

NYSE:NKE traded up $9.74 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $72.28. 77,904,804 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 15,695,384. The company has a fifty day moving average of $60.31 and a 200 day moving average of $67.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a quick ratio of 1.52 and a current ratio of 2.19. NIKE has a twelve month low of $52.28 and a twelve month high of $94.74. The company has a market capitalization of $106.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.03, a P/E/G ratio of 2.23 and a beta of 1.21.

NIKE (NYSE:NKE - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, June 26th. The footwear maker reported $0.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.12 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $11.10 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.69 billion. NIKE had a net margin of 9.43% and a return on equity of 32.18%. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 11.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.99 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that NIKE will post 2.05 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other NIKE news, Director Robert Holmes Swan purchased 8,600 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 4th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $58.46 per share, for a total transaction of $502,756.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 31,983 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,869,726.18. The trade was a 36.78% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 1.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in NKE. AG2R LA Mondiale Gestion D Actifs purchased a new position in NIKE during the first quarter worth approximately $2,645,000. Swedbank AB raised its holdings in shares of NIKE by 2.8% during the 1st quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 953,011 shares of the footwear maker's stock worth $60,497,000 after acquiring an additional 26,026 shares during the period. Voya Investment Management LLC boosted its position in shares of NIKE by 1.8% during the 1st quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC now owns 1,453,473 shares of the footwear maker's stock valued at $92,266,000 after acquiring an additional 25,481 shares during the last quarter. BROOKFIELD Corp ON grew its holdings in shares of NIKE by 36.2% in the first quarter. BROOKFIELD Corp ON now owns 658,598 shares of the footwear maker's stock valued at $41,808,000 after purchasing an additional 175,000 shares during the period. Finally, eCIO Inc. acquired a new stake in NIKE during the first quarter worth about $52,000. 64.25% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.

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