Clarity Financial LLC Boosts Holdings in NIKE, Inc. $NKE

Clarity Financial LLC increased its holdings in NIKE, Inc. (NYSE:NKE) by 26.7% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 4,978 shares of the footwear maker’s stock after buying an additional 1,049 shares during the quarter. Clarity Financial LLC’s holdings in NIKE were worth $354,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Caldwell Sutter Capital Inc. lifted its stake in NIKE by 6.3% in the second quarter. Caldwell Sutter Capital Inc. now owns 2,390 shares of the footwear maker’s stock valued at $170,000 after buying an additional 142 shares during the last quarter. Westmount Partners LLC lifted its stake in NIKE by 2.9% in the second quarter. Westmount Partners LLC now owns 5,165 shares of the footwear maker’s stock valued at $367,000 after buying an additional 146 shares during the last quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in NIKE by 0.3% in the second quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC now owns 52,012 shares of the footwear maker’s stock valued at $3,695,000 after buying an additional 147 shares during the last quarter. Matrix Trust Co lifted its stake in NIKE by 53.1% in the second quarter. Matrix Trust Co now owns 441 shares of the footwear maker’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 153 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Summit Financial Strategies Inc. lifted its stake in NIKE by 3.8% in the second quarter. Summit Financial Strategies Inc. now owns 4,270 shares of the footwear maker’s stock valued at $303,000 after buying an additional 155 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 64.25% of the company’s stock.

NIKE Trading Up 6.2%

Shares of NKE stock opened at $74.04 on Thursday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $74.73 and its 200 day moving average price is $67.31. NIKE, Inc. has a 1-year low of $52.28 and a 1-year high of $85.23. The firm has a market capitalization of $109.35 billion, a PE ratio of 37.97, a P/E/G ratio of 2.60 and a beta of 1.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 2.21 and a quick ratio of 1.50.

NIKE (NYSE:NKE) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, September 30th. The footwear maker reported $0.49 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.27 by $0.22. NIKE had a return on equity of 21.05% and a net margin of 6.23%.The firm had revenue of $11.72 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.96 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.70 earnings per share. NIKE’s quarterly revenue was up 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that NIKE, Inc. will post 2.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

NIKE Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, October 1st. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 2nd were issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, September 2nd. NIKE’s dividend payout ratio is currently 74.07%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on NKE shares. DZ Bank upgraded NIKE from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Telsey Advisory Group reissued a “market perform” rating and issued a $75.00 target price on shares of NIKE in a report on Wednesday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their target price on NIKE from $77.00 to $71.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, June 20th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $78.00 target price on shares of NIKE in a report on Wednesday. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group set a $85.00 target price on NIKE and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, September 25th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-three have assigned a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $81.26.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other NIKE news, Chairman Mark G. Parker sold 110,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.29, for a total value of $7,951,900.00. Following the sale, the chairman owned 842,361 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $60,894,276.69. This represents a 11.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.80% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

NIKE Company Profile

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.