Duncan Williams Asset Management LLC Makes New Investment in NIKE, Inc. (NYSE:NKE)

Duncan Williams Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in NIKE, Inc. (NYSE:NKE) during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund bought 3,267 shares of the footwear maker’s stock, valued at approximately $247,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Range Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in NIKE during the 4th quarter worth approximately $642,000. Cacti Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of NIKE during the fourth quarter worth $9,987,000. Capricorn Fund Managers Ltd purchased a new position in shares of NIKE in the fourth quarter valued at $5,384,000. FNY Investment Advisers LLC grew its holdings in NIKE by 5,745.9% during the 4th quarter. FNY Investment Advisers LLC now owns 8,652 shares of the footwear maker’s stock valued at $654,000 after purchasing an additional 8,504 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Eagle Rock Investment Company LLC increased its stake in NIKE by 49.2% during the 4th quarter. Eagle Rock Investment Company LLC now owns 60,642 shares of the footwear maker’s stock worth $4,589,000 after buying an additional 19,991 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 64.25% of the company’s stock.

NIKE Trading Down 0.9 %

Shares of NYSE:NKE opened at $73.60 on Friday. NIKE, Inc. has a twelve month low of $70.32 and a twelve month high of $107.43. The company has a current ratio of 2.22, a quick ratio of 1.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57. The firm has a market cap of $108.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.72, a P/E/G ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 1.02. The company has a 50 day moving average of $75.45 and a 200-day moving average of $77.86.

NIKE (NYSE:NKE) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, December 19th. The footwear maker reported $0.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.63 by $0.15. The company had revenue of $12.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $12.11 billion. NIKE had a return on equity of 36.99% and a net margin of 9.98%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 7.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.03 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that NIKE, Inc. will post 2.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

NIKE Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 2nd were paid a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.17%. This is a boost from NIKE’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. NIKE’s payout ratio is currently 49.38%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

NKE has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. TD Cowen lowered their target price on NIKE from $78.00 to $73.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, November 18th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on NIKE from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, September 30th. Evercore ISI reduced their target price on NIKE from $105.00 to $97.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Needham & Company LLC restated a “buy” rating and issued a $84.00 price target on shares of NIKE in a research note on Friday, December 20th. Finally, Robert W. Baird reduced their price objective on shares of NIKE from $110.00 to $105.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, December 23rd. Fourteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $89.96.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director John W. Rogers, Jr. bought 2,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 27th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $76.65 per share, with a total value of $191,625.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 34,403 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,636,989.95. This trade represents a 7.84 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

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.