Investors in the two German sporting goods manufacturers Adidas and Puma had to deal with negative guidelines from US competitor Nike on Friday. Having started trading two percent lower, Adidas shares were recently able to make up for their discount, reaching the previous day’s level at 167 euros. Puma initially lost up to 3.5 percent and reduced its loss to 0.6 percent.
Adidas and Puma therefore developed much more moderately than Nike’s titles, which was justified on the market by the fact that the Americans had to contend with greater challenges. In premarket Nasdaq trading, Nike shares fell ten percent below the $60 mark. The last price paid there was $58.96, the lowest level since May. The previous annual low, reached in April, is a little lower at $52.28.
Nike disappointed its investors despite stronger-than-expected sales in the second quarter. According to analysts, Nike management was unable to convince investors during a conference call. RBC expert Piral Dadhania judged that the tone struck there was more cautious than expected. A slight decline in sales was forecast for the third quarter, while the market expected an increase of 1.5 percent, said JPMorgan.
Dadhania complained that there was no sign of a significant improvement in sales growth and gross margin for the third quarter compared to the previous quarter, which supports a short-term negative outlook for the US group’s shares. “Nike appears to be still in the transition phase of its turnaround process, with recovery likely to be slower than expected,” he added. Nike is having problems in China, among other places, where the company is “facing a wide range of challenges”.
The Converse brand is also problematic for Nike. Jörg Philipp Frey from Warburg Research limited the significance of the statements for Adidas somewhat. In his assessment, the Nike results “once again demonstrate Adidas’ superior brand dynamics.” The German manufacturer is growing much more dynamically and the quality of sales is better than Nike. “We therefore continue to see considerable potential for Adidas to gain market share from Nike,” emphasized the expert.