Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund Cuts Stock Position in NIKE, Inc. (NYSE:NKE)

Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund trimmed its position in shares of NIKE, Inc. (NYSE:NKE) by 9.0% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 35,572 shares of the footwear maker’s stock after selling 3,503 shares during the quarter. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund’s holdings in NIKE were worth $3,145,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of NKE. M&G Plc purchased a new stake in NIKE in the first quarter valued at about $10,109,000. Spirepoint Private Client LLC purchased a new position in shares of NIKE in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $425,000. Alera Investment Advisors LLC grew its position in NIKE by 6.3% during the 1st quarter. Alera Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,358 shares of the footwear maker’s stock worth $222,000 after purchasing an additional 139 shares during the last quarter. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board purchased a new stake in NIKE during the 1st quarter worth approximately $868,000. Finally, Patten & Patten Inc. TN raised its holdings in shares of NIKE by 2.1% in the first quarter. Patten & Patten Inc. TN now owns 70,671 shares of the footwear maker’s stock worth $6,642,000 after buying an additional 1,476 shares during the last quarter. 64.25% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

NIKE Stock Up 1.3 %

NYSE:NKE opened at $76.66 on Friday. NIKE, Inc. has a 52 week low of $70.75 and a 52 week high of $123.39. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $80.89 and its two-hundred day moving average is $83.27. The stock has a market capitalization of $114.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 1.03. The company has a quick ratio of 1.58, a current ratio of 2.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57.

NIKE (NYSE:NKE) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 1st. The footwear maker reported $0.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.52 by $0.18. The business had revenue of $11.59 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $11.64 billion. NIKE had a net margin of 10.60% and a return on equity of 39.84%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 10.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.94 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that NIKE, Inc. will post 2.74 EPS for the current year.

NIKE Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 2nd will be given a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.09%. This is a positive change from NIKE’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. NIKE’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 42.41%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of NIKE from $78.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. Williams Trading raised NIKE from a “sell” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $67.00 to $93.00 in a report on Friday, August 16th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on NIKE from $88.00 to $79.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 26th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price target on shares of NIKE from $82.00 to $80.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of NIKE from $86.00 to $95.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, September 20th. Fourteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $96.48.

About NIKE

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.