Franklin Resources Inc. Sells 1,795,853 Shares of NIKE, Inc. (NYSE:NKE)

Franklin Resources Inc. lessened its holdings in NIKE, Inc. (NYSE:NKE) by 22.4% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 6,209,417 shares of the footwear maker’s stock after selling 1,795,853 shares during the quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. owned approximately 0.41% of NIKE worth $506,688,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in NKE. Tidal Investments LLC lifted its holdings in shares of NIKE by 65.4% during the third quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 105,571 shares of the footwear maker’s stock worth $9,332,000 after purchasing an additional 41,752 shares during the period. Soltis Investment Advisors LLC raised its position in NIKE by 12.2% during the 3rd quarter. Soltis Investment Advisors LLC now owns 36,010 shares of the footwear maker’s stock worth $3,183,000 after purchasing an additional 3,918 shares during the last quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky lifted its holdings in NIKE by 8.2% during the 3rd quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky now owns 265,449 shares of the footwear maker’s stock worth $23,466,000 after buying an additional 20,043 shares during the period. Toronto Dominion Bank grew its position in shares of NIKE by 59.9% in the 3rd quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 1,055,597 shares of the footwear maker’s stock valued at $93,315,000 after buying an additional 395,434 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Coldstream Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of NIKE by 62.3% in the third quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. now owns 121,279 shares of the footwear maker’s stock valued at $10,347,000 after buying an additional 46,567 shares during the period. 64.25% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

NIKE Stock Down 0.9 %

NKE stock opened at $77.25 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $115.83 billion, a PE ratio of 22.13, a P/E/G ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 1.02. 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, Inc. has a twelve month low of $70.75 and a twelve month high of $123.39. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $78.52 and its 200-day moving average is $81.21.

NIKE (NYSE:NKE) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 1st. The footwear maker reported $0.70 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.52 by $0.18. NIKE had a return on equity of 39.84% and a net margin of 10.60%. The business had revenue of $11.59 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $11.64 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.94 EPS. The business’s revenue was down 10.4% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that NIKE, Inc. will post 2.73 EPS for the current fiscal year.

NIKE Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed 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. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.07%. This is an increase from NIKE’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 2nd. NIKE’s dividend payout ratio is presently 45.85%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently commented on NKE. Guggenheim cut their price objective on NIKE from $115.00 to $110.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on shares of NIKE from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, September 20th. TD Cowen reduced their price objective on shares of NIKE from $78.00 to $73.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, November 18th. Evercore ISI lowered their target price on shares of NIKE from $110.00 to $105.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. Finally, Piper Sandler reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $80.00 price target on shares of NIKE in a research report on Friday, September 20th. Fourteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, NIKE presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $94.04.

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.