Nike Slides to a 52-Week Low as a Weak 2027 Outlook Overshadows Its Profit

Nike shares fell nearly 5% in afternoon trading Friday and touched a one-year low, a day after the company matched a steady quarter with a downbeat forecast for the year ahead. The stock traded at $33.45 in early afternoon, down from Thursday’s close of $35.15. It had dropped as far as $31.97 earlier in the session. That price is the lowest the shares have reached in 52 weeks.

The quarter itself gave sellers little to work with. The forecast was another matter.

The quarter held, the guidance pointed lower

Nike reported fiscal first-quarter results after Thursday’s close, for the three months ended August 31. Revenue fell 4% from a year earlier to $11.2 billion, a 5% drop in currency-neutral terms. Gross margin widened 60 basis points to 42.8%. Net income of $712 million slipped 2%. Diluted earnings of 48 cents a share edged below the 49 cents booked a year earlier, yet landed a touch above what analysts had modeled.

Then came the outlook. Nike told investors it expects full-year revenue to decline by a high-single-digit percentage in fiscal 2027, and set adjusted earnings guidance of $1.15 to $1.35 a share, a range that excludes about 15 cents of restructuring costs. Its direct-to-consumer arm fell 8% in the quarter, while wholesale held closer to flat with a 1% decline. Greater China stayed the sore spot, with revenue there down 22% to $1.18 billion. Sales across Europe, the Middle East and Africa fell 5%.

A multiyear reset it calls Pace

Alongside the numbers, Nike detailed a restructuring named Pace, which it describes as an operating-model overhaul meant to speed up its sport-focused strategy. The plan realigns the company’s markets into three geographies and adds a campus in India. It also targets a supply chain management has called too slow.

The price tag is substantial. Nike expects Pace to deliver $2.5 billion in cumulative savings through fiscal 2031, against $1.0 billion in pre-tax charges. Severance runs about $300 million this year, with a similar figure penciled in for next.

A stock far from its highs

Friday’s drop extends a long decline. Nike has lost about 12% over the past month and 27% over the past three. At the morning low it sat 62% below its 52-week high of $84.76. The selling has come on heavy turnover. Thursday’s session, before the report landed, already traded 112 million shares, nearly three times the stock’s recent daily average, and Friday’s volume pushed past 100 million by early afternoon.

The decline is specific to Nike rather than the broader tape. The broad market rose Friday, with the Nasdaq Composite up more than 1% and the S&P 500 up 0.7%. Nike went the other way.

Next up: the December quarter

Nike’s next report is scheduled for December 17, its fiscal second quarter and the first full look at whether the holiday stretch steadies the top line. That is the real test. Investors will watch for early proof that Pace trims costs without cutting into the products that still move. And the closing bell today will show whether buyers keep stepping in near the one-year low, the way they did off the morning’s bottom.

This is a general-market summary for information only — not investment advice, and not a recommendation regarding any security.