Nike Beats Street on Strong Demand from Asia, Europe

Nike reported a 51% jump in fiscal first-quarter profit to $569.7 million, or $1.12/share. Earnings were helped by a $0.20/share tax-related benefit and double-digit growth in Asia and Europe. Excluding one-time items, EPS totaled $0.92, a nickel ahead of analyst expectations. Sales were also better than expected, +11% to $4.66B vs. est. $4.58B. Sales climbed 22% to $630.8M in Asia, +16% to $1.48B in Europe and a more modest 2% to $1.64B in the U.S. Nike said orders for delivery from Sept.-Jan. increased 12% to $5.9B, led by a 20% rise in the Americas, 17% growth in both Asia and Europe and a 3% increase in the U.S. An analyst at Allegiant Asset Management Group, whose firm owns shares of Nike, commented, "Nike is a best-in-class company, and with its global exposure, it's a play on the weak dollar." Nike reported a positive forex impact on revenues of 3%. Gross margins rose 70 basis points to 44.8%. Shares of Nike were last up 0.8% to $58.78 in extended activity, after losing 0.4% to $58.32 during normal trading Thursday. Check back later for Nike's earnings conference call transcript.

Sources: Press release, Bloomberg, MarketWatch
Commentary: Nike Gaps Up On Earnings: Usually Continues Higher For Rest of Day • 10 College Stocks to Study • Berkshire Hathaway Releases Latest 13F: Summary of Holdings
Stocks/ETFs to watch: NKE. Competitors: ADDYY.PK, UA. Athletic/footwear retailers: FL, DKS, FINL. ETFs: PEZ

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