NIKE (NYSE:NKE) Stock Dropped to Strong Sell by Zacks Research

NIKE (NYSE:NKE) was downgraded by analysts at Zacks Research from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note issued on Thursday, Zacks reports.

A number of other research firms have also weighed in on NKE. Wells Fargo & Company set a $30.00 price objective on NIKE and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday. Benchmark raised NIKE to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 22nd. Wall Street Zen downgraded NIKE from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday. UBS Group restated a “neutral” rating and set a $34.00 target price (down from $42.00) on shares of NIKE in a research note on Friday. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group set a $35.00 price target on shares of NIKE and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating, twenty-two have assigned a Hold rating and eight have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $42.12.

NIKE Stock Down 3.6%

Shares of NYSE:NKE opened at $33.88 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $50.27 billion, a PE ratio of 16.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.42 and a beta of 1.09. NIKE has a 1 year low of $31.97 and a 1 year high of $74.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 1.96 and a quick ratio of 1.36. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $38.88 and its two-hundred day moving average is $42.88.

NIKE (NYSE:NKE) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 1st. The footwear maker reported $0.48 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.43 by $0.05. NIKE had a net margin of 6.74% and a return on equity of 16.18%. The firm had revenue of $11.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $11.32 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.49 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. NIKE has set its FY 2027 guidance at 1.150-1.350 EPS. Analysts predict that NIKE will post 1.61 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, COO Venkatesh Alagirisamy sold 3,671 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $37.59, for a total value of $137,992.89. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 104,862 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,941,762.58. This represents a 3.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Philip McCartney sold 2,559 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $37.59, for a total transaction of $96,192.81. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 78,121 shares in the company, valued at $2,936,568.39. This represents a 3.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold a total of 14,974 shares of company stock worth $600,126 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of NIKE

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. J. Stern & Co. LLP lifted its position in NIKE by 49,010.4% in the fourth quarter. J. Stern & Co. LLP now owns 48,054,542 shares of the footwear maker’s stock valued at $3,061,555,000 after acquiring an additional 47,956,692 shares during the last quarter. Flossbach Von Storch SE purchased a new position in shares of NIKE during the second quarter worth about $488,714,000. Capital World Investors grew its holdings in shares of NIKE by 16.2% during the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 49,069,951 shares of the footwear maker’s stock worth $3,126,246,000 after purchasing an additional 6,830,938 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its holdings in shares of NIKE by 6.8% during the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 63,598,789 shares of the footwear maker’s stock worth $2,636,104,000 after purchasing an additional 4,052,428 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Capital International Investors increased its position in shares of NIKE by 83.3% during the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 7,642,382 shares of the footwear maker’s stock worth $486,895,000 after purchasing an additional 3,472,515 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 64.25% of the company’s stock.

Key NIKE News

Here are the key news stories impacting NIKE this week:

• Positive Sentiment: NIKE reported fiscal Q1 EPS of $0.48, above the $0.43 analyst consensus. The company also retains a strong balance sheet, with approximately $8.4 billion in cash and short-term investments, while its dividend yield is approaching 5%. NIKE Posts Earnings Results
• Positive Sentiment: Some analysts see the selloff as an opportunity. Freedom Broker upgraded NKE from “sell” to “buy” with a $51 price target, while BTIG maintained a “buy” rating with a $50 target. Bernstein called the stock “de-risked” following the earnings release. Bernstein says Nike stock is de-risked
• Neutral Sentiment: NIKE is launching the Pace restructuring program, targeting approximately $2.5 billion in savings. Management said the plan is intended to simplify operations and support performance categories, but implementation will include further job cuts likely extending into 2027. NIKE fiscal 2027 first-quarter results
• Neutral Sentiment: The company’s dividend appears supported by its liquidity and history of 24 consecutive years of increases, although a higher yield also reflects the stock’s substantial decline and investors’ concerns about future earnings.
• Negative Sentiment: Fiscal Q1 revenue fell 4.3% year over year to $11.21 billion, below the $11.32 billion consensus estimate. Weakness in Greater China, Sportswear and Jordan continued to weigh on sales, while competition and changing consumer preferences are pressuring the brand. Nike plans more job cuts and forecasts revenue drop
• Negative Sentiment: Management expects fiscal 2027 revenue to decline by a high-single-digit percentage and provided EPS guidance of $1.15–$1.35, well below the roughly $1.66 analyst consensus. The outlook suggests Nike’s turnaround may take longer and be more costly than investors expected. Nike shares fall after weak outlook and layoffs
• Negative Sentiment: Several firms reduced price targets, including Citi to $32 and JPMorgan to $33, with neutral or underweight ratings. Zacks also placed NKE on its Strong Sell list, reinforcing concerns about margin pressure, China weakness and delayed recovery.

About NIKE

NIKE, Inc is a global sportswear company that designs, develops, markets and sells athletic footwear, apparel, equipment, accessories and related services. Its products are marketed under the NIKE, Jordan and Converse brands and are used across a broad range of sports and lifestyle activities, including running, basketball, football, training and outdoor pursuits.

The company distributes its products through a combination of wholesale partners, NIKE-owned retail stores and digital platforms.