NIKE, Inc. (NYSE:NKE) Shares Sold by Clifford Swan Investment Counsel LLC

Clifford Swan Investment Counsel LLC lessened its stake in NIKE, Inc. (NYSE:NKE) by 0.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 195,005 shares of the footwear maker’s stock after selling 1,286 shares during the period. Clifford Swan Investment Counsel LLC’s holdings in NIKE were worth $14,756,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in NKE. JNBA Financial Advisors raised its position in NIKE by 1.3% in the fourth quarter. JNBA Financial Advisors now owns 10,045 shares of the footwear maker’s stock valued at $760,000 after purchasing an additional 131 shares during the period. Frisch Financial Group Inc. raised its position in NIKE by 4.7% in the third quarter. Frisch Financial Group Inc. now owns 3,036 shares of the footwear maker’s stock valued at $269,000 after purchasing an additional 136 shares during the period. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV raised its position in NIKE by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV now owns 20,446 shares of the footwear maker’s stock valued at $1,547,000 after purchasing an additional 136 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in NIKE by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 15,014 shares of the footwear maker’s stock valued at $1,136,000 after purchasing an additional 150 shares during the period. Finally, Game Plan Financial Advisors LLC raised its position in NIKE by 11.1% in the fourth quarter. Game Plan Financial Advisors LLC now owns 1,500 shares of the footwear maker’s stock valued at $114,000 after purchasing an additional 150 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 64.25% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at NIKE

In other NIKE news, Chairman Mark G. Parker sold 169,732 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.83, for a total value of $12,361,581.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now owns 896,632 shares in the company, valued at approximately $65,301,708.56. This represents a 15.92 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director John W. Rogers, Jr. bought 2,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, December 27th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $76.65 per share, with a total value of $191,625.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 34,403 shares in the company, valued at $2,636,989.95. The trade was a 7.84 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

NIKE Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:NKE opened at $79.43 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.51, a current ratio of 2.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57. NIKE, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $68.62 and a fifty-two week high of $105.57. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $74.64 and a 200 day simple moving average of $78.32. The company has a market cap of $117.49 billion, a PE ratio of 24.52, a P/E/G ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 1.01.

NIKE (NYSE:NKE) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, December 19th. The footwear maker reported $0.78 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.63 by $0.15. NIKE had a net margin of 9.98% and a return on equity of 36.99%. The business had revenue of $12.35 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $12.11 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.03 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 7.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that NIKE, Inc. will post 2.05 EPS for the current year.

NIKE Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd will be given a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.01%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 3rd. NIKE’s dividend payout ratio is presently 49.38%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have commented on NKE shares. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price objective on NIKE from $82.00 to $80.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Barclays cut their price objective on NIKE from $79.00 to $70.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, December 20th. TD Cowen cut their price objective on NIKE from $78.00 to $73.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, November 18th. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on NIKE from $92.00 to $95.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on NIKE from $80.00 to $74.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, December 20th. Fourteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $89.77.

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.