NIKE, Inc. (NYSE:NKE) Stake Lifted by Arete Wealth Advisors LLC

Arete Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in NIKE, Inc. (NYSE:NKE - Free Report) by 256.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 25,467 shares of the footwear maker's stock after acquiring an additional 18,315 shares during the period. Arete Wealth Advisors LLC's holdings in NIKE were worth $1,927,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of NKE. JNBA Financial Advisors boosted its holdings in shares of NIKE by 1.3% during the 4th quarter. JNBA Financial Advisors now owns 10,045 shares of the footwear maker's stock valued at $760,000 after acquiring an additional 131 shares during the last quarter. Frisch Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of NIKE by 4.7% in the third quarter. Frisch Financial Group Inc. now owns 3,036 shares of the footwear maker's stock worth $269,000 after buying an additional 136 shares during the last quarter. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV grew its position in NIKE by 0.7% during 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 buying an additional 136 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in NIKE by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 15,014 shares of the footwear maker's stock valued at $1,136,000 after buying an additional 150 shares during the last quarter. 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 worth $114,000 after acquiring an additional 150 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 64.25% of the company's stock.

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NIKE Price Performance

NYSE NKE traded down $3.23 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $54.02. The stock had a trading volume of 20,746,596 shares, compared to its average volume of 13,480,043. NIKE, Inc. has a twelve month low of $52.50 and a twelve month high of $98.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 2.22 and a quick ratio of 1.51. The firm's 50 day moving average is $72.96 and its 200 day moving average is $76.27. The stock has a market capitalization of $79.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.62, a PEG ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 1.15.

NIKE (NYSE:NKE - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, March 20th. The footwear maker reported $0.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.28 by $0.26. NIKE had a return on equity of 36.99% and a net margin of 9.98%. The business had revenue of $11.27 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.02 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.98 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that NIKE, Inc. will post 2.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

NIKE Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were given a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.96%. NIKE's payout ratio is currently 53.16%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have issued reports on NKE shares. UBS Group cut their price target on NIKE from $73.00 to $66.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Friday, March 21st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their price objective on shares of NIKE from $92.00 to $82.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Citigroup cut NIKE from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and decreased their price target for the company from $102.00 to $72.00 in a report on Friday, February 7th. Telsey Advisory Group reissued a "market perform" rating and set a $80.00 target price on shares of NIKE in a research note on Monday, March 17th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of NIKE from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $75.00 to $115.00 in a report on Monday, February 24th. Fifteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, NIKE presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $87.38.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Chairman Mark G. Parker sold 169,732 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.83, for a total transaction of $12,361,581.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 896,632 shares in the company, valued at $65,301,708.56. This trade represents a 15.92 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.