NIKE reports Thursday: the numbers to know before NKE earnings

NIKE (NKE) reports results for its quarter ending August 2026 after the close on Thursday, 1 October. The consensus forecast is earnings of $0.43 a share, based on 11 analyst estimates compiled by Zacks and published by Nasdaq. A year earlier the company reported $0.49 for the same quarter, so the forecast implies EPS growth of -12.2%.

Shares closed at $35.40 on Wednesday, 30 September, down 1.23% on the day, for a market value of about $52.32B according to Nasdaq. The stock is down 44.4% so far in 2026 and down 9.4% in September, and sits 52.5% below its 52-week closing high of $74.57 from 2 October.

What the last report showed

In its most recent quarterly report (a 10-K for the quarter ended 31 May 2026, filed 15 July), NIKE reported revenue of $11.0B, down 1% from $11.1B a year earlier and 2.7% below the previous quarter's $11.3B. Net income was $1.1B, up 407% from $211.0M. Diluted earnings per share came to $0.35 against $0.54 a year before.

Gross margin was 49.2%, compared with 40.3% a year earlier. Over the latest four reported quarters, revenue totals $46.4B. The balance sheet showed $7.6B of cash and equivalents at 31 May 2026.

Margins tell the story

Gross margin, the share of revenue left after the direct cost of making the product, has ranged from 40.2% (quarter ended Feb 2026) to 49.2% (quarter ended May 2026) over the last 8 quarters in the filings. Net income equalled 9.7% of revenue.

The earnings track record

NIKE has topped the consensus EPS estimate in 4 of the last 4 quarters, according to Nasdaq's earnings-surprise data. (These EPS figures are on the adjusted basis Zacks tracks, which can differ from the GAAP diluted EPS in the SEC filing.) Most recently, for the quarter ending May 2026, it reported $0.20 a share against a $0.11 forecast, a +81.8% surprise.

The stock's reaction has been sizeable. Measured from the close before each report to the close of the first session after it, the shares moved an average of 9.1% (in either direction) around the last 3 releases. The biggest swing was -12.9% around the report dated 31 March 2026.

What the forecast implies

The $0.43 consensus sits 115% above the $0.20 NIKE reported for the previous quarter.