Nike to post worst revenue fall in 5 years on stagnant demand

By Nicholas P. Brown and Ananya Mariam Rajesh

(Reuters) - Nike is expected to post its steepest revenue decline in nearly five years in its quarterly results on Thursday, as its new products failed to open the wallets of Americans reluctant to snap up non-essential items like sporting goods and clothing.

Downloads of Nike mobile apps for the quarter were down 35% from a year earlier, according to market intelligence firm Sensor Tower. Foot traffic at Nike stores was down 11%, according to data compiled by Raymond James.

Foot Locker, a major Nike retailer, disclosed in its earnings March 5 that promotional pressures would hurt its profit margins in the year ahead. This signaled the impact of discounts imposed by Nike to clear out unsold inventory.

Nike products comprise more than 60% of Foot Locker merchandise.

Those recent indicators illustrate the long road ahead for Nike and its new CEO Elliott Hill, who assumed the top job in October. Nike shares have slid 19% since September 20, following Hill's appointment. Rival Adidas, meanwhile, has seen its stock tick up slightly over the same period.

Under Hill, Nike began an ambitious turnaround, though Morningstar analyst David Swartz said one or two snazzy new styles will not be enough to get the sportswear giant back on track for sales growth.

"It needs to create a whole new franchise, like a family of products that add billions in sales," Swartz said. "That takes years."

Nike is expected to post a revenue decline of 11.5% to $11.01 billion in the third quarter, according to data compiled by LSEG. It would be the steepest fall since the 38% decline Nike reported in fourth quarter of fiscal 2020 during the pandemic.

Its earnings per share is expected to come in at 29 cents, down sharply from 77 cents a year earlier. Investors told Reuters they were keen for details on Nike's efforts to rebuild relationships with retailers and clear out unsold inventory.

"It continues to be a 'show-me' story," said Jay Woods, chief global strategist at investment banking firm Freedom Capital Markets. "The question is, do investors have the patience?"

Nike's inventories were $8 billion in the quarter ended November 30, according to the company.

Some of Hill's moves so far - including the launch of running shoes Pegasus Premium and Vomero 18 in January and February; a new partnership with womenswear company Skims; and its first Super Bowl ad in 27 years - drew praise from John Nagle, chief investment officer of Kavar Capital Partners LLC, which holds Nike shares.

The planned women's line with Kim Kardashian-owned Skims "would be pretty good for the business," said Nagle, "if they can even just step into that market and be a significant player alongside the Lululemons and Vuoris."

The Super Bowl commercial, conceived with ad agency Widen + Kennedy, was intended to reach women shoppers, and to demonstrate Nike's marketing prowess and regain its pop culture relevance.

The spot featured top female athletes like Caitlin Clark, the basketball superstar who has been central to the newfound surge in popularity of the Women's National Basketball Association. (This story has been corrected to fix the company name to Vuori in paragraph 13)

(Reporting by Ananya Mariam Rajesh in Bengaluru and Nicholas P. Brown in New York; Editing by David Gregorio)