This post may contain links from our sponsors and affiliates, and Flywheel Publishing may receive
compensation for actions taken through them.
For the full fiscal year, Nike reported EPS of $2.97 on revenues of $27.8 billion compared with year-ago EPS of $2.69 on revenues of $6.7 billion.
Nike did not offer guidance in its press release, but did say that orders for delivery between June and November total $13.3 billion, up 11% over a the same period a year ago. The consensus first fiscal quarter estimates call for EPS of $0.91 on revenues of $7.64 billion. For the 2015 fiscal year analysts expect EPS of $3.37 on revenues of $30.09 billion.
Gross margins rose to 44.8%, up 1.2% year-over-year for the full year and gross margin in the fourth quarter rose to 45.6%, up 1.7% from the same period a year ago. Nike attributed the gains to higher sales prices and continued sales in its higher margin direct-to-consumer business.
Nike attributes its 3% EPS increase to fewer shares outstanding, and notes that the company repurchased 12.3 million shares for approximately $912 million in the fourth quarter. Over the full year Nike’s share buybacks get the credit for the 11% gain in per share earnings.
Nike’s shares are up nearly 24% over the past 12 months, but year-to-date the stock has dropped about 2.3%. Depending on stock buybacks to post a profit hardly seems like a long-term strategy for growth. And expenses are rising as fast as sales, so growth in gross margin is being eaten up by SG&A expenses.
Shares got a solid boost in after-hours trading Thursday, up nearly 3% at $78.96 in the stock’s 52-week range of $60.18 to $80.26. Thomson Reuters had a consensus analyst price target of around $82.80 before the results were announced.
ALSO READ: Nike Launches Eco-Friendly Line of Clothes
Credit Card Companies Are Doing Something Nuts
Credit card companies are at war. The biggest issuers are handing out free rewards and benefits to win the best customers.
It’s possible to find cards paying unlimited 1.5%, 2%, and even more today. That’s free money for qualified borrowers, and the type of thing that would be crazy to pass up. Those rewards can add up to thousands of dollars every year in free money, and include other benefits as well.
We’ve assembled some of the best credit cards for users today. Don’t miss these offers because they won’t be this good forever.
Flywheel Publishing has partnered with CardRatings for our coverage of credit card products. Flywheel Publishing and CardRatings may receive a commission from card issuers.
Thank you for reading! Have some feedback for us?
Contact the 24/7 Wall St. editorial team.
Our expert who first called NVIDIA in 2009 is predicting 2025 will see a historic AI breakthrough.
You can follow him investing $500,000 of his own money on our top AI stocks for free.