Nike CEO Elliott Hill Buys $2M in Shares as Stock Hits 2014 Low Amid Weak Guidance

Nike CEO Elliott Hill bought more than $2 million worth of the company’s shares on April 13, the same day Nike shares hit their lowest point since late 2014. The purchase reflected his confidence in the company’s long-term prospects even as the stock has fallen more than 50 percent since Nike announced in September 2024 that Hill had been tapped for the top job.

Hill took over as CEO in October 2024.

He spoke to NBC News in an exclusive interview last week at Nike’s headquarters in Beaverton, Oregon, the first installment in the network’s new “Business in America” series. “I think it’s a reflection on where we are in this moment in time,” Hill said. ” The company has 78,000 employees and operates three brands: its namesake Nike brand, Converse and the Jordan brand.

“It’s a big company — 78,000 employees — it takes time to reorient a company around three brands in sports,” Hill said. “It takes time to reinvest in the relationships that exist out in the marketplace. 3 billion.

The company projected that revenue in the current quarter would decline between 2 percent and 4 percent and predicted that revenue for the full calendar year would only be in the low single digits. “The environment around us has become increasingly dynamic and could experience unplanned volatility due to the disruption in the Middle East, rising oil prices, and other factors that could impact either input costs or consumer behavior,” Matthew Friend, Nike’s chief financial officer, said on the company’s earnings call in March.

5 percent since its low in April.

Analysts at UBS wrote on April 13 that investors were wondering if earnings estimates and sentiment have fallen far enough to justify buying Nike stock now and that Nike still has much to prove. For Hill, the role has required adjustment. “It’s been a bit of adjustment for me, having to learn to do these types of interviews, to be visible, to have media, fans, Wall Street watching your every move and critiquing it,” he said.

Under Nike’s prior CEO the company prioritized selling direct-to-consumer during the pandemic over partnerships with retailers. “Where we make mistakes is when we forget who we’re serving,” Hill said. Hill said the path back is through sport.

Nike has a new leadership team and new strategy in place for China while cleaning up the digital marketplace and elevating physical stores there. S. government and would use that money to invest in the company.

“We’re playing the long game here,” he said of Nike’s overall turnaround plan.