Shares of Nike, Inc. fell $8.19, or 15.5 percent, to $44.63 on Wednesday, April 1, to reach an 11-year low after disappointing guidance led three Wall Street firms to lower their ratings on Nike stock, while other firms slashed their price targets and earnings estimates for the upcoming years.

Nike’s guidance was delivered as part of its FYQ3 report, which saw company earnings top analyst targets, but officials on a call with analysts warned that company revenues are expected to decline 2 percent to 4 percent in the current quarter. Analysts had forecast a 1.9 percent increase.

Nike also forecast flat earnings and continued low-single-digit sales declines for the rest of calendar 2026, notably below analyst expectations.

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Bank of America’s Lorraine Hutchinson lowered her rating on Nike to “Neutral” from “Buy.” Her price target was cut to $55 from $73, and her EPS estimates were slashed to $1.60 from $2.40 for FY27 and to $2.00 from $3.26 for FY28.

She wrote, “We thought improved performance product innovation and lapping Win Now actions would result in a return to growth in 1Q27; instead, management has initiated guidance for sales to remain negative into 3Q27. Strong results in running and NA were the reasons for our patience, but with the sales inflection now nine months away, we see little room for multiple expansion, leading to our downgrade to Neutral.”

She noted that while North America’s recovery continued, sell-through at wholesale in the region lagged expectations. She also noted that while margins are expected to benefit from lapping tariff pressures, higher oil prices may push product costs higher.

Hutchinson wrote of her valuation, “We think estimates are nearing a bottom, but the path to a clean sales reacceleration is uncertain amid the reset in China, Sportswear normalization and volatile macro conditions. Innovation and North America are positives, but the timeline on a sales recovery in China and stabilization in Europe is less certain.”

Analyst Matthew Boss from J.P. Morgan moved his rating on Nike to “Neutral” from “Overweight,” and slashed his price target to $52 from $86. Boss noted that the timeline for Nike to restore its profit margins to historic levels has shifted. He stated, “Our timeline for NKE to return to a 10 percent operating margin now extends to FY29” versus FY28 previously.

Boss concluded that although Nike had started to “realize initial green shoots” from its strategy for running shoes in its North American market, the bulk of the company’s product portfolio remains “challenged globally, resulting in an elongated timeline for the model to reach an inflection to revenue growth and a return to double-digit operating margins.”

Goldman Sachs’ Brooke Roach downgraded Nike to “Neutral” from “Buy,” slashing the price target to $52 from $76.

Roach said she remains constructive on Nike’s Win Now actions and believes the company’s Sport Offense strategy will drive sequential improvement over time. Third-quarter results showed the initiative is driving incremental momentum in select areas of the North America business when Nike activates product and marketing alongside key sport moments.

However, Roach stated that Nike’s FYQ3 report left her “incrementally cautious” on the timeline of its recovery. Nike’s momentum in sportswear “remains muted,” its inventory reset actions are ongoing, and China remains under “particular pressure,” the analyst said in a note. With macro headwinds intensifying, Goldman believes “more patience will be needed” as Nike executes its strategic plan amid rising macro headwinds.

Citi Research’s Paul Lejuez reiterated his “Hold” rating while lowering his price target on Nike to $53 from $65. Citi reduced its EPS estimate for FY27 from $2.14 to $1.88 based on lower sales and margins than previously forecast.

Lejuez noted that while North America wholesale has been a bright spot for Nike in recent quarters, Nike indicated that sell-in has been disappointing, implying future sell-ins and subsequently sales “may moderate.” He noted that while Nike’s management called out some successes, “the tone of this call included more callouts of disappointment regarding the pace of the turnaround.”

He said on his “Hold” valuation, “Nike is the dominant player in the global athletic footwear and apparel market. Over the last several years, overdistribution of key products and elevated promotions have weighed on NKE’s sales and margins. While new management is currently improving product and marketing, we believe franchise management and macro headwinds across global markets limit visibility and make a turnaround more challenging.”

Telsey Advisory Group kept its “Market Perform” rating while lowering its price target to $55 from $65 and reducing its FY27 EPS estimate to $1.75 from $2.25. Analyst Cristina Fernandez wrote in a note, “Overall, Nike is making the right moves by cleaning up inventory, rebalancing the product portfolio by increasing newness and reducing the focus on classic franchises, and strengthening relationships with wholesale partners. However, the turnaround is progressing at a slow pace and there remains significant work to revitalize the entire product portfolio and right-size its international businesses (58 percent of FY25 sales).”

At Needham, Tom Nikic reiterated his “hold” rating while trimming his EPS targets to $1.66 from $1.72 for FY27 and to $2.02 from $2.07 in FY28. He does not have a price target on Nike’s stock. Nikic wrote, “While some of the key aspects of the ‘Win Now’ strategy make sense (refocus on sport, wholesale, marketing, etc.), the external environment is highly challenging, and the prior CEO may have dug the company into a bigger hole than it seemed.”

Barclays kept its “Overweight” rating while trimming its price target to $67 from $73. Adrienne Yih wrote in a note, “We welcome the aggressive reset to sales and margin consensus expectations as we had assessed that they were too optimistic. We believe de-risking estimates give NKE breathing room for a turnaround.”

Yih said forward commentary from Nike’s team shows management is “intentionally sacrificing short-term revenue (deemed low quality as they reduce Sportswear) and EPS to reset the marketplace, clean inventory, and rebuild brand and wholesale health – this is particularly acute in the Greater China market.”

Williams Trading’s Sam Poser axed his price target to $50 from $80 but kept his “buy” rating. Poser wrote, “Clearly there’s a big difference between a company that’s doing the right thing to fix its business and a great stock. The period of time that NKE’s turnaround is taking is longer than we anticipated, but we remain confident of the success.”

Other investment firms’ moves on Nike, following the company’s third-quarter results, include:

  • BTIG maintained its “Buy” rating and lowered its price target from $90 to $75.
  • Piper Sandler reiterated its “Overweight” rating while reducing its price target to $60 from $75.
  • Stifel kept its “Hold” grade while lowering its price target to $56 from $65.
  • Truist maintained its “Buy” rating and lowered its price target to $57 from $69.
  • UBS kept its “Neutral” rating and trimmed its price target to $54 from $58.
  • Evercore ISI Group maintained its “Outperform while lowering price target to $57 from $69.
  • Wells Fargo kept its “Overweight” and reduced its price target to $55 from $65

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