Nike Shares Fall as Turnaround Hits Some Potholes

April 1, 2026

Nike Inc.’s shares were down 11 percent in pre-market trading on Wednesday, April 1, as the sportswear giant warned that sales will fall for the rest of the calendar year, with weakness in China and within sportswear categories offsetting a continued recovery expected in North America. Shares continued to fall Wednesday morning after the market opened, stymied further by fresh downgrades from analysts at Bank of America and JP Morgan.

On an analyst call, CFO Matt Friend said sales for its current fiscal fourth quarter ended May 31 are expected to drop between 2 percent and 4 percent, compared with Wall Street estimates of a 1.9 percent increase. The decline largely reflects an expected 20 percent decline in China. For the duration of the calendar year, sales are projected to fall by a low single-digit percentage as growth in North America is largely offset by declines in China.

Nike’s disappointing guidance comes as Nike reported earnings for the fiscal third quarter ended February 28 topped analysts’ consensus targets with sales in line with estimates.

The North America region saw continued improvement as result of payback from its Win Now restructuring efforts and a refocus on a Sport Offense strategy, but weak results continued in the sportswear segment and at Converse. China showed little signs of recovery with EMEA’s performance also eroding sequentially amid a promotional climate. SGB MEDIA