Principal Financial Group Inc. Decreases Stock Holdings in NIKE, Inc. $NKE

Principal Financial Group Inc. lessened its stake in NIKE, Inc. (NYSE:NKE) by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 1,363,849 shares of the footwear maker’s stock after selling 8,740 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in NIKE were worth $95,101,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in NKE. Twin Peaks Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of NIKE in the second quarter valued at about $31,000. NewSquare Capital LLC boosted its holdings in NIKE by 54.4% in the 2nd quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 732 shares of the footwear maker’s stock worth $52,000 after buying an additional 258 shares during the last quarter. Field & Main Bank boosted its holdings in NIKE by 36.4% in the 2nd quarter. Field & Main Bank now owns 750 shares of the footwear maker’s stock worth $53,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Financial Consulate Inc. purchased a new stake in NIKE during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $57,000. Finally, Hemington Wealth Management raised its holdings in shares of NIKE by 41.5% during the third quarter. Hemington Wealth Management now owns 839 shares of the footwear maker’s stock valued at $58,000 after acquiring an additional 246 shares during the last quarter. 64.25% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

NIKE Stock Performance

NIKE stock opened at $62.19 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $63.97 and a 200-day simple moving average of $68.57. The stock has a market cap of $92.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.16 and a beta of 1.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 2.06 and a quick ratio of 1.40. NIKE, Inc. has a 1-year low of $52.28 and a 1-year high of $82.44.

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

NIKE Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 2nd. Investors of record on Monday, December 1st were given a dividend of $0.41 per share. This represents a $1.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 1st. This is a positive change from NIKE’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. NIKE’s dividend payout ratio is 96.47%.

Insider Transactions at NIKE

In related news, CEO Elliott Hill bought 16,388 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 29th. The shares were bought at an average price of $61.10 per share, with a total value of $1,001,306.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 241,587 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,760,965.70. This represents a 7.28% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Timothy D. Cook purchased 50,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 22nd. The shares were bought at an average price of $58.97 per share, with a total value of $2,948,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 105,480 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,220,155.60. The trade was a 90.12% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Insiders bought 91,229 shares of company stock worth $5,452,640 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.80% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

NKE has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Citigroup reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $65.00 price target (down from $70.00) on shares of NIKE in a research note on Friday, December 19th. Argus lowered their target price on shares of NIKE from $85.00 to $70.00 in a research note on Tuesday, December 23rd. UBS Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of NIKE in a report on Monday, January 5th. Robert W. Baird decreased their price target on shares of NIKE from $93.00 to $85.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, December 19th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $67.00 price objective on shares of NIKE in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have issued a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $74.61.

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).