NIKE (NYSE:NKE) Upgraded at Argus

Argus upgraded shares of NIKE (NYSE:NKE) to a strong-buy rating in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday morning,Zacks.com reports.

NKE has been the topic of several other reports. CICC Research downgraded NIKE from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $69.00 to $58.00 in a report on Monday, April 6th. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price objective on NIKE from $90.00 to $75.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 1st. Zacks Research downgraded NIKE from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Monday, June 1st. UBS Group set a $48.00 price objective on NIKE and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 1st. Finally, DZ Bank reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of NIKE in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have given a Buy rating, nineteen have given a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $54.80.

NIKE Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:NKE opened at $43.78 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $64.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.95, a PEG ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 1.12. NIKE has a 12 month low of $40.00 and a 12 month high of $80.17. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $43.67 and its 200 day moving average is $51.86. The company has a current ratio of 1.96, a quick ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40.

NIKE (NYSE:NKE) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, June 30th. The footwear maker reported $0.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.11 by $0.09. NIKE had a net margin of 6.70% and a return on equity of 16.54%. The business had revenue of $10.97 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.85 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.14 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 1.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that NIKE will post 1.76 EPS for the current year.

NIKE Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 1st. Investors of record on Monday, June 1st were paid a $0.41 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 1st. This represents a $1.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.7%. NIKE’s dividend payout ratio is 78.47%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other NIKE news, EVP Philip Mccartney sold 17,398 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, June 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.18, for a total transaction of $803,439.64. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 53,133 shares in the company, valued at $2,453,681.94. This trade represents a 24.67% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. 0.80% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On NIKE

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in NKE. Cornerstone Financial Management LLC purchased a new stake in NIKE in the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Sankala Group LLC bought a new position in NIKE during the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. J.Safra Asset Management Corp purchased a new position in NIKE during the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. Kemnay Advisory Services Inc. purchased a new position in NIKE during the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, Scarborough Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of NIKE in the 1st quarter valued at about $25,000. 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).