Nike (NYSE:NKE) shares soared 15.5% in the last trading session to close at $154.35. The move was backed by solid volume with far more shares changing hands than in a normal session. This compares to the stock's 2.2% loss over the past four weeks.
Nike’s stock rally comes after it reported blowout fourth-quarter fiscal 2021 sales and earnings and issued an upbeat view for fiscal 2022 and beyond. Sales almost doubled year over year to $12.3 billion, with management expecting growth in the coming fiscal year. The return to sporting events in North America, reopening of Europe and permanent shifts toward digital and health & wellness have been key drivers. Also, its connection with customers through compelling brand experiences across NIKE Jordan and Converse, product innovation and expanding digital advantage have been beneficial.
Analysts were lured by the company’s upbeat forecast for fiscal 2022 sales, which is projected to exceed $50 billion reflecting low-double digits growth year over year. Management anticipates further momentum in its business as it comes out of the pandemic. It expects to benefit from robust digital growth, scaling NIKE-owned physical retail concepts and growing with partners. Moreover, it expects revenue growth in the first half of fiscal 2022 to be slightly higher than the second half.
The company also expects sustained strong revenue growth for fiscal 2025, which is expected to inflect upward to high-single-digit to low-double-digit growth, on average. This is likely to be driven by strong opportunities in women's, apparel, Jordan, digital and international.
This athletic apparel maker is expected to post quarterly earnings of $1.10 per share in its upcoming report, which represents a year-over-year change of +15.8%. Revenues are expected to be $12.52 billion, up 18.2% from the year-ago quarter.
Earnings and revenue growth expectations certainly give a good sense of the potential strength in a stock, but empirical research shows that trends in earnings estimate revisions are strongly correlated with near-term stock price movements.
For Nike, the consensus EPS estimate for the quarter has been revised 0.9% higher over the last 30 days to the current level. And a positive trend in earnings estimate revisions usually translates into price appreciation. So, make sure to keep an eye on NKE going forward to see if this recent jump can turn into more strength down the road.
The stock currently carries a Zacks Rank 3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today's Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) stocks here >>>>
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