NIKE (NYSE:NKE) & Skechers U.S.A. (NYSE:SKX) Head to Head Survey

NIKE (NYSE:NKE) and Skechers U.S.A. (NYSE:SKX) are both consumer discretionary companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their earnings, dividends, valuation, profitability, risk, analyst recommendations and institutional ownership.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

64.3% of NIKE shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 80.0% of Skechers U.S.A. shares are held by institutional investors. 1.1% of NIKE shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 24.8% of Skechers U.S.A. shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares NIKE and Skechers U.S.A.”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
NIKE	$46.31 billion	2.44	$3.22 billion	$2.16	35.31
Skechers U.S.A.	$8.97 billion	1.06	$639.47 million	$4.16	15.21

NIKE has higher revenue and earnings than Skechers U.S.A.. Skechers U.S.A. is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than NIKE, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Volatility & Risk

NIKE has a beta of 1.25, meaning that its share price is 25% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Skechers U.S.A. has a beta of 1.12, meaning that its share price is 12% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and price targets for NIKE and Skechers U.S.A., as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
NIKE	0	12	16	3	2.71
Skechers U.S.A.	0	8	6	0	2.43

NIKE currently has a consensus price target of $77.19, suggesting a potential upside of 1.20%. Skechers U.S.A. has a consensus price target of $67.69, suggesting a potential upside of 6.99%. Given Skechers U.S.A.’s higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Skechers U.S.A. is more favorable than NIKE.

Profitability

This table compares NIKE and Skechers U.S.A.’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
NIKE	6.95%	23.33%	8.57%
Skechers U.S.A.	6.96%	13.34%	7.53%

Summary

NIKE beats Skechers U.S.A. on 10 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

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. It also sells a line of performance equipment and accessories comprising bags, sport balls, socks, eyewear, timepieces, digital devices, bats, gloves, protective equipment, and other equipment for sports activities under the NIKE brand; and various plastic products to other manufacturers. In addition, the company markets apparel with licensed college and professional team, and league logos, as well as sells sports apparel; and licenses unaffiliated parties to manufacture and sell apparel, digital devices, and applications and other equipment for sports activities under NIKE-owned trademarks. It sells its products to footwear stores; sporting goods stores; athletic specialty stores; department stores; skate, tennis, and golf shops; and other retail accounts through NIKE-owned retail stores, digital platforms, independent distributors, licensees, and sales representatives. NIKE, Inc. was founded in 1964 and is headquartered in Beaverton, Oregon.

About Skechers U.S.A.

Skechers U.S.A., Inc. designs, develops, markets, and distributes footwear for men, women, and children worldwide. The company operates through Wholesale and Direct-to-Consumer segments. It offers footwear under Skechers Hands Free Slip-ins, Skechers Arch Fit, and Skechers Air-Cooled Memory Foam brands. In addition, the company provides men's and women's slip-resistant and safety-toe casuals, and boots for protective footwear in their work environments. It sells its products through department stores, family shoe stores, specialty running and sporting goods retailers, and big box club stores; franchisee and licensee third-party store operators; company-owned retail stores; digital commerce sites and mobile applications; and concept, factory outlet, and big box stores. The company licenses its Skechers brand. Skechers U.S.A., Inc. was incorporated in 1992 and is headquartered in Manhattan Beach, California.