Verity & Verity LLC Makes New Investment in NIKE, Inc. (NYSE:NKE)

Verity & Verity LLC acquired a new position in NIKE, Inc. (NYSE:NKE - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 5,670 shares of the footwear maker's stock, valued at approximately $429,000.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in NKE. Teachers Insurance & Annuity Association of America bought a new stake in shares of NIKE in the third quarter valued at approximately $30,000. VitalStone Financial LLC boosted its holdings in NIKE by 52.6% in the 3rd quarter. VitalStone Financial LLC now owns 435 shares of the footwear maker's stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 150 shares during the period. Dunhill Financial LLC grew its position in NIKE by 52.2% in the 3rd quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 493 shares of the footwear maker's stock worth $44,000 after purchasing an additional 169 shares during the last quarter. Ecofi Investissements SA bought a new position in shares of NIKE during the 2nd quarter worth about $49,000. Finally, Riverview Trust Co bought a new stake in shares of NIKE in the third quarter valued at about $52,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 64.25% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have commented on NKE. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on NIKE from $80.00 to $74.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, December 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of NIKE from $77.00 to $73.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, December 2nd. DA Davidson upgraded shares of NIKE to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, December 23rd. UBS Group reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $73.00 price target on shares of NIKE in a research report on Thursday, December 26th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $84.00 price objective on shares of NIKE in a report on Friday, December 20th. Fourteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $89.96.

NIKE Trading Down 0.3 %

Shares of NKE stock traded down $0.22 on Friday, reaching $70.89. 9,688,434 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 11,668,856. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $75.77 and a 200 day moving average price of $77.92. The stock has a market cap of $104.85 billion, a PE ratio of 21.88, a P/E/G ratio of 2.26 and a beta of 1.02. NIKE, Inc. has a one year low of $70.32 and a one year high of $107.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 2.22 and a quick ratio of 1.51.

NIKE (NYSE:NKE - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, December 19th. The footwear maker reported $0.78 earnings per share (EPS) 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 company had revenue of $12.35 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $12.11 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.03 EPS. The company's revenue was down 7.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that NIKE, Inc. will post 2.1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

NIKE Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 2nd were given a dividend of $0.40 per share. This is a boost from NIKE's previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.26%. NIKE's payout ratio is presently 49.38%.

Insider Buying and Selling at NIKE

In related news, Director John W. Rogers, Jr. purchased 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 27th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $76.65 per share, with a total value of $191,625.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 34,403 shares in the company, valued at $2,636,989.95. The trade was a 7.84 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company's stock.

NIKE 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.