NEW YORK, December 29, 2025, 03:49 ET — Market closed
- Nike last closed up 1.6% at $60.93 on Friday
- UBS reiterated a Neutral rating and kept a $62 price target in a recent note
- Investors are bracing for thin year-end trade and Fed minutes due Tuesday
Nike (NKE) shares will be in focus when U.S. trading resumes later Monday after UBS reiterated a Neutral stance on the sportswear maker, pointing to improving brand indicators but a longer turnaround timeline. The stock last closed up 1.6% at $60.93 on Friday.
The timing matters because Nike is still trying to steady investor confidence after its mid-December earnings report flagged margin pressure from tariffs and discounting, alongside another sharp fall in China sales.
The note also lands in the final three trading sessions of 2025, when light volumes and year-end positioning can exaggerate moves. Traders are also looking ahead to Federal Reserve meeting minutes on Tuesday that could sway rate-cut expectations and consumer-stock valuations.
Wall Street ended Friday’s post-Christmas session nearly flat, with consumer discretionary — the sector that includes Nike — the biggest laggard, Reuters reported. Investors are watching for a “Santa Claus rally,” a seasonal stretch covering the last five trading days of the year and the first two of the next. Reuters
UBS analyst Jay Sole reiterated a Neutral rating and kept his $62 price target, an analyst’s estimate of where a stock could trade over the next 12 months. “The recovery is moving in the right direction but may take longer than investors expect,” Sole wrote. TipRanks
Sole based his view on results from UBS Evidence Lab’s global sportswear survey, which he said showed improving perceptions of Nike’s brand compared with last year.
The survey also suggested easier product access as Nike pushes back into the wholesale channel — sales through third-party retailers — after years of emphasizing direct-to-consumer selling via its own stores and website.
UBS remained cautious on how quickly those brand signals will translate into earnings, pointing to uneven regional performance and execution risks as Nike works through its product reset, TipRanks reported.
Nike reported fiscal second-quarter results on Dec. 18 that beat revenue expectations, but gross margin fell 300 basis points, or 3 percentage points — a key profitability measure after the cost of goods sold. Chief executive Elliott Hill said tariffs remained a headwind, and CFO Matthew Friend said those tariffs would cost Nike about $1.5 billion this year, Reuters reported.
The company said sales in China fell 17% for a sixth straight quarter and projected third-quarter revenue would decline in the low single digits. Analysts have also highlighted competitive pressure from newer brands such as On and Deckers-owned Hoka, Reuters reported.
Nike shares are down about 7% since the Dec. 18 close, based on closing prices, after sliding to an intraday low of $57.14 on Dec. 22.
Before the next regular session, traders will be watching whether year-end portfolio adjustments extend the broader market’s late-December resilience, with the S&P 500 about 1% from 7,000 in the final week of the year, Reuters reported.
Tuesday’s Fed minutes, from the Dec. 9-10 meeting, are the next macro waypoint. The central bank has cut rates by 75 basis points — 0.75 percentage point — over its last three meetings of 2025 to a 3.50%-3.75% range, and investors are trying to pin down the pace of further easing in 2026.
For Nike, traders have also kept an eye on whether the stock can hold the round-number $60 area after last week’s dip to $57.14, with Friday’s close at $60.93 marking a bounce from those lows.
The next company-specific catalyst is Nike’s fiscal third-quarter report, which Zacks expects on March 19. Investors will be looking for progress on China demand, tariff costs and gross margin stabilization as Nike works through its turnaround plan.
