Nike: Blackrock ups stake to 6.1%

By

Olivier Guyot

Translated by
Erin Floyd

Published
Feb 8, 2018

In a move that is certain to reassure investors, the American investment titan Blackrock, which has over $6 trillion assets under management worldwide, has recently consolidated its ownership in Nike. According to SEC filings, the fund has now surpassed 5% equity with its acquisition of additional shares.

According to the document, it currently owns 79,221,723 shares and therefore 6.1% of the Beaverton group which controls Nike, Jordan and Hurley. Blackrock was already one of the biggest five shareholders of the group. According to a recent breakdown of the shareholding, Blackrock is now positioned just behind the Vanguard group, another major player in global investment which recently held 98,126,022 shares.

Phil Knight, the co-founder of the group, is also amongst the top 10 shareholders. According to the latest figures, he owns 1.78% of Nike, with 23,368,542 shares.

Blackrock's equity offensive comes in the wake of a surge in Nike share prices thanks to bullish analyst predictions last month, despite the tepid results at the group headed by Mark Parker in its domestic market over the last few months. Growth during its second trimester was driven by the international segment, and the group recorded turnover of 34.4 billion dollars in its 2016-17 financial year, ended May 31.