The shares of footwear and apparel giant Nike sank 20% on Friday after the company revealed a weak forecast for annual sales. Nike stock went from $94.25 close on Thursday all the way down to $75.37 per share close on Friday, resulting in a $28.41 billion market cap loss.
Nike recorded revenue of $12.61 billion in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2024, representing a 2% decline in comparison to the same period last year and coming shy of Wall Street analysts’ estimates of $12.86 billion. The company’s direct-to-consumer sales came at $5.1 billion, a drop of 8% compared to the same quarter in 2023.
However, Nike’s $0.99 earnings per share did manage to exceed expectations, with analysts estimating $0.66 earnings per share for the quarter.
The thing that caused the most concern for investors is Nike’s prediction that its fiscal 2025 revenue will drop by mid-single-digit percentage compared to the expected 1% increase.
“Nike is at a point where they want to put out the most conservative guidance they can, such that they’re setting the bar low for themselves, and hopefully it’s a bar they can beat,” Art Hogan, chief market strategist at B Riley Wealth, told Yahoo Finance.