Zacks Research Has Bearish Forecast for NIKE FY2026 Earnings

NIKE, Inc. (NYSE:NKE) – Equities researchers at Zacks Research dropped their FY2026 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for NIKE in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday, April 14th. Zacks Research analyst Team now forecasts that the footwear maker will post earnings per share of $1.46 for the year, down from their previous forecast of $1.53. The consensus estimate for NIKE’s current full-year earnings is $2.05 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for NIKE’s Q2 2027 earnings at $0.63 EPS, Q3 2027 earnings at $0.43 EPS, Q1 2028 earnings at $0.66 EPS, Q2 2028 earnings at $0.80 EPS and Q3 2028 earnings at $0.58 EPS.

Several other brokerages have also issued reports on NKE. Daiwa Securities Group cut their price objective on NIKE from $75.00 to $61.00 in a report on Tuesday, December 23rd. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $52.00 price objective (down from $76.00) on shares of NIKE in a report on Wednesday, April 1st. Telsey Advisory Group cut their price objective on NIKE from $65.00 to $55.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 1st. Guggenheim cut their price objective on NIKE from $77.00 to $74.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 1st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of NIKE in a report on Monday. Seventeen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seventeen have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $62.34.

NIKE Stock Performance

Shares of NIKE stock opened at $45.48 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $67.34 billion, a PE ratio of 30.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 1.31. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $55.36 and a 200-day simple moving average of $61.60. The company has a quick ratio of 1.45, a current ratio of 2.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50. NIKE has a 12 month low of $42.09 and a 12 month high of $80.17.

NIKE (NYSE:NKE) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, March 31st. The footwear maker reported $0.35 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.29 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $11.28 billion during 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%.NIKE’s revenue was up .1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.54 earnings per share.

NIKE Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 2nd were issued a dividend of $0.41 per share. This represents a $1.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.6%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 2nd. NIKE’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 108.61%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Timothy D. Cook bought 25,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, April 10th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $42.43 per share, for a total transaction of $1,060,750.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director directly owned 130,480 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,536,266.40. This represents a 23.70% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Robert Holmes Swan bought 11,781 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 7th. The shares were bought at an average price of $42.44 per share, for a total transaction of $499,985.64. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director owned 55,074 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,337,340.56. This represents a 27.21% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have purchased 64,441 shares of company stock valued at $2,734,204 in the last three months. 0.80% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On NIKE

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Mizuho Markets Cayman LP bought a new position in shares of NIKE in the third quarter worth about $34,200,000. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC increased its stake in shares of NIKE by 697.5% in the third quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 228,889 shares of the footwear maker’s stock worth $15,960,000 after purchasing an additional 200,187 shares during the period. Strive Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of NIKE in the third quarter worth about $1,743,000. Brighton Jones LLC increased its stake in shares of NIKE by 54.6% in the third quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 104,791 shares of the footwear maker’s stock worth $7,307,000 after purchasing an additional 37,019 shares during the period. Finally, Park National Corp OH increased its stake in shares of NIKE by 81.5% in the fourth quarter. Park National Corp OH now owns 431,055 shares of the footwear maker’s stock worth $27,463,000 after purchasing an additional 193,514 shares during the period. 64.25% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Key Stories Impacting NIKE

Here are the key news stories impacting NIKE this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Large insider buys from CEO Elliott Hill (~23,660 shares) and Board Director Tim Cook (~25,000 shares) signaled management confidence and likely supported buying interest. Read More. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Unusual call-option volume (large purchases of near‑term calls) points to bullish speculative positioning that can amplify intraday upside. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Brand strength among younger consumers (surveys showing Nike as the top U.S. teen brand) provides a demand narrative that supports a longer-term turnaround thesis. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Nike is shifting mix toward wholesale as digital sales soften — this could stabilize margins if wholesale execution is strong, but it raises near‑term top‑line uncertainty. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Shelf registration for up to $2.332B in Class B shares (ESOP-related) is on file — worth monitoring for timing and any supply impact, though not an immediate dilution event. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst downgrades and price‑target cuts (HSBC, Piper Sandler and others) and Zacks lowering near‑term EPS estimates increase selling pressure by highlighting execution, margin and macro risks. Read More. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Persisting bear narratives — delayed turnaround, China weakness, tariff headwinds and critical media/commentary — keep traction until clearer sales or margin inflection appears. Read More.

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).