Nike’s revenue returns to the growth zone in the fiscal second quarter

Nike Inc. (NYSE: NKE) said on Friday that its revenue returned to the growth zone in the fiscal second quarter. The athletic-apparel giant hit a fresh new high in the stock market following the release of its earnings report on Friday.

Nike shares were reported more than 3% up in extended trading on Friday. Including the price action, the stock is now exchanging hands at £106.35 per share versus a sharply lower £46.46 per share in March due to the COVID-19 restrictions. Nike Inc. had started the year 2020 with a per-share price of £75.61 in the stock market.

Nike’s Q2 financial results versus analysts’ estimates

Nike said that its profit in the second quarter printed at £920 million that translates to 57.71 pence per share. In the comparable quarter of last year, the American multinational had earned a lower 51.79 pence per share. In the prior quarter (Q1), Nike had reported a massive 82% year over year increase in digital sales as the ongoing pandemic restricted people to their homes.

In terms of sales, the Beaverton-based company reported £8.29 billion in the recent quarter that represents a 7% annualised growth. In comparison, its sales were capped at a lower £7.64 billion in Q2 of last year.

According to FactSet, experts had forecast the U.S. sportswear company to register £7.81 billion of revenue in the recent quarter. Their estimate for per-share earnings stood at 46.61 pence. In an announcement last week, Nike revealed to have reached a multi-year agreement with UCLA Athletics.

CFO Matt Friend’s comments on Friday

On a year over year basis, Nike recorded a decline in its revenue in the past two quarters due to the ongoing Coronavirus pandemic that pushed its stores into temporarily shutting down in recent months. The COVID-19 crisis has so far infected more than 75 million people worldwide and caused over 1.6 million deaths.

CFO Matt Friend commented on the earnings report on Friday and said:

“With healthy inventory positions across all geographies, our return to growth is a testament to our digital strength, as well as our disciplined marketplace and financial management.”

Nike performed largely upbeat in the stock market last year with an annual gain of a little under 40%. At the time of writing, the American multinational athletic apparel maker is valued at £127.45 billion and has a price to earnings ratio of 81.89.