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Nike (NKE) is looking for a fresh start under its new CEO, Elliott Hill. The footwear giant reported mixed fiscal first quarter results, withdrew its full-year sales guidance, and postponed its investor day that was originally scheduled for November. Hill will step into the role on October 14, where he will embark on a turnaround mission for the company.
Baird Senior Research Analyst Jonathan Komp joins Morning Brief to discuss the earnings report and some of the headwinds Hill will have to face as CEO.
"This really was a transitional quarter for Nike. The call itself was led by the company's CFO... I think the results, if you look at revenue down 10%, earnings down more than 25%, really highlights some of the pressures in the business currently. You see Nike taking proactive actions to reduce classics footwear inventory in the marketplace, that's had a significant hit. And then frankly, you've seen lower-than-expected unit demand in a couple of places. The company called out back-to-school in North America as well as the retail conditions in China, both as some incremental challenges," Komp tells Yahoo Finance.
Following Nike's earnings call, Baird lowered its forward earnings by about 10%. However, Komp argues, "Generally, we expect stocks in the sector to bottom when earnings start getting less bad. We think we've seen the worst here for Nike, but it is going to take patience."
He believes Nike still has "exceptional brand equity and value," which will help it propel forward under Hill's leadership. Komp notes that Hill will have to lead the company through competition from names like Adidas (ADDYY), Hoka, and On (ONON), as well as navigate a weaker consumer environment.
Komp adds, "We think Nike can regain its leadership position. And if you look over the last few years, really, Nike has become a bit unbalanced. We think there's significant opportunity left on the table reengaging wholesale partners and especially some of those that cater to lower price points specifically. So we think there's opportunity across the board for Nike, but it has to start with product. And it's going to take some time to scale that back up. And when they do that, we expect it to come really across price points, so that should address multiple consumer categories in the marketplace."
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This post was written by Melanie Riehl