Bernstein reiterates Nike stock rating as inventory clearance shows progress

Published 27/06/2025, 16:42
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Investing.com - Bernstein maintained its Outperform rating and $85.00 price target on Nike (NYSE:NKE) stock on Thursday. The athletic wear giant, currently valued at $107.1 billion, trades at $72.65 per share. According to InvestingPro analysis, the stock appears slightly overvalued at current levels.

The research firm cited positive developments in Nike’s inventory clearance efforts and order book growth as key indicators that "the worst of this turnaround is over." Bernstein noted these factors suggest Nike is making progress in its recovery strategy.

The firm acknowledged that Nike’s story "isn’t fully clean yet," specifically pointing to unproven recovery in the Lifestyle and Jordan categories. Despite these concerns, Bernstein expects to see gradual sequential improvement in upcoming quarters.

Bernstein characterized Nike as "a back half CY25 story," suggesting meaningful upside won’t materialize until the second half of calendar year 2025, which corresponds to Nike’s first half of fiscal year 2026. The firm anticipates "a slow and steady upward grind" for the stock as more positive indicators emerge.

Looking further ahead, Bernstein projects Nike will achieve $2.90 earnings per share and 10% margin in fiscal year 2027 as the company approaches "a sustainable MT growth story."

In other recent news, Nike has seen a series of positive developments concerning its financial outlook and analyst ratings. The company reported fourth-quarter fiscal 2025 earnings that exceeded market expectations, posting earnings per share of $0.14, slightly above the consensus of $0.13, despite an 11% revenue decline on a constant currency basis. This performance has led Needham to raise its price target on Nike to $78.00 from $66.00, while maintaining a Buy rating, citing an improving outlook and revising their earnings per share estimates upward for the coming fiscal years.

Similarly, Truist Securities increased its price target on Nike to $85.00 from $73.00, maintaining a Buy rating, due to rapid improvements in Nike’s turnaround efforts and a positive trajectory in sales growth and margin recovery. Piper Sandler also raised its price target to $80.00 from $70.00, highlighting better-than-expected sales guidance and positive trends in Nike’s Holiday wholesale order book. UBS, while raising its price target to $63.00 from $56.00, maintained a Neutral rating, expressing caution about potential tariff impacts and the near-term outlook.

Williams Trading reiterated its Buy rating with a $73.00 price target, identifying the fourth quarter of fiscal 2025 as the bottom for sales and margin trends, with signs of recovery in wholesale channels. These recent developments reflect a cautiously optimistic outlook from analysts, noting improvements in inventory levels and sales growth prospects, alongside challenges such as tariff risks and the need for continued marketplace cleanup.

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