Bank of Nova Scotia Buys 634,640 Shares of NIKE, Inc. $NKE

Bank of Nova Scotia boosted its stake in shares of NIKE, Inc. (NYSE:NKE) by 296.6% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 848,589 shares of the footwear maker’s stock after buying an additional 634,640 shares during the quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia owned approximately 0.06% of NIKE worth $59,172,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Boothbay Fund Management LLC raised its holdings in NIKE by 2,135.7% during the 3rd quarter. Boothbay Fund Management LLC now owns 192,405 shares of the footwear maker’s stock worth $13,416,000 after purchasing an additional 183,799 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its position in shares of NIKE by 6.2% in the 3rd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 6,212,952 shares of the footwear maker’s stock worth $429,724,000 after purchasing an additional 363,316 shares during the period. Viking Global Investors LP boosted its stake in shares of NIKE by 29.1% in the 3rd quarter. Viking Global Investors LP now owns 8,996,579 shares of the footwear maker’s stock valued at $627,331,000 after purchasing an additional 2,029,381 shares during the last quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of NIKE by 501.5% in the 3rd quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 2,325,505 shares of the footwear maker’s stock valued at $162,157,000 after purchasing an additional 1,938,856 shares during the last quarter. Finally, SummitTX Capital L.P. increased its position in shares of NIKE by 2,829.3% during the third quarter. SummitTX Capital L.P. now owns 84,951 shares of the footwear maker’s stock worth $5,924,000 after buying an additional 82,051 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 64.25% of the company’s stock.

NIKE Trading Down 0.2%

NYSE:NKE opened at $54.00 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 2.06, a quick ratio of 1.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50. The stock has a market capitalization of $79.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.76, a PEG ratio of 2.76 and a beta of 1.27. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $62.53 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $65.52. NIKE, Inc. has a 12 month low of $52.28 and a 12 month high of $80.17.

NIKE (NYSE:NKE) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, December 18th. The footwear maker reported $0.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.37 by $0.16. The company had revenue of $12.43 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $12.19 billion. NIKE had a net margin of 5.43% and a return on equity of 18.43%. The business’s revenue was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.78 EPS. Analysts expect that NIKE, Inc. will post 2.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

NIKE Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 2nd will be issued a $0.41 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 2nd. This represents a $1.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.0%. NIKE’s dividend payout ratio is presently 96.47%.

Key NIKE News

Here are the key news stories impacting NIKE this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Barclays upgraded NKE to an Overweight, citing a clear North America recovery, stronger wholesale bookings, and a refreshed product pipeline that could drive margin recovery and re‑rating. This upgrade is the main bullish catalyst today. Barclays upgrades NIKE (NKE)
• Positive Sentiment: Multiple outlets (MarketBeat, TheStreet) amplified the Barclays call, highlighting improving North America sales, inventory cleanup and product momentum — factors that could support upside if execution continues. Just Buy It? Barclays Thinks Nike Is Ready to Run
• Neutral Sentiment: Nike promoted Cimarron Nix to chief sustainability officer, adding supply‑chain and labor expertise to management — a governance/ESG move that may help long‑term brand and operational resilience but is unlikely to move near‑term earnings. Can Nike’s New Sustainability Chief Reframe NKE’s Long-Term Competitive Edge Story?
• Negative Sentiment: Short‑term selling: recent coverage notes a bigger single‑day decline and extended multi‑month underperformance — investor skepticism persists despite the upgrade. That ongoing weakness is pressuring the stock. Nike (NKE) Registers a Bigger Fall Than the Market
• Negative Sentiment: Options market shows moderately bearish positioning and higher implied volatility, with elevated demand for downside protection — a signal that traders expect continued near‑term swings. Option traders moderately bearish in Nike
• Negative Sentiment: Bearish analyst/editorial pieces cite ongoing risks (China weakness, Converse reset, valuation concerns) and list reasons to sell — these narratives can keep downward pressure until clearer signs of global stabilization appear. 3 Reasons to Sell NKE

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Robert Holmes Swan acquired 8,691 shares of NIKE stock in a transaction on Monday, December 22nd. The stock was purchased at an average price of $57.54 per share, with a total value of $500,080.14. Following the completion of the purchase, the director owned 43,293 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,491,079.22. The trade was a 25.12% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Elliott Hill acquired 16,388 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 29th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $61.10 per share, with a total value of $1,001,306.80. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer owned 241,587 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,760,965.70. This represents a 7.28% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders have bought 75,079 shares of company stock worth $4,449,887. Corporate insiders own 0.80% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Telsey Advisory Group lowered their target price on shares of NIKE from $75.00 to $72.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, December 19th. Daiwa Securities Group cut their price target on shares of NIKE from $75.00 to $61.00 in a research report on Tuesday, December 23rd. Guggenheim reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of NIKE in a report on Wednesday, December 31st. Weiss Ratings raised NIKE from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research report on Monday, January 12th. Finally, UBS Group reissued a “neutral” rating on shares of NIKE in a research note on Monday, January 5th. Twenty-three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, NIKE currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $74.90.

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).