Athletic apparel company Nike (NKE) has reported financial results for this year’s third quarter that topped Wall Street estimates.
The Beaverton, Oregon-based company announced earnings per share (EPS) of $0.78 U.S., which was far ahead of the $0.63 U.S. expected among analysts.
Revenue in the quarter came in at $12.35 billion U.S., which topped the consensus forecast of $12.13 billion U.S. However, sales were down 8% from a year earlier.
The results are an improvement for Nike under new chief executive officer (CEO) Elliott Hill, who assumed the helm of the company earlier this year.
In his first few months on the job, Hill has pulled back on three of the company’s key sneakers: Air Force 1s, Dunks and Air Jordan 1s.
Those sneakers dominated Nike’s product line-up but became so commonplace that they lost their cool factor. Now Nike is trying to cut back supply of those brands to boost demand.
Hill says he is also focusing on reviving Nike’s innovation pipeline and resetting its relationships with wholesalers.
Aside from its latest financial results, Nike has scored a few other wins in recent weeks.
On Dec. 11, the National Football League (NFL) announced that it had renewed its contract with Nike after it briefly courted other companies. The new NFL contract with Nike runs until 2038.
Nike is now the exclusive uniform provider for the NFL, Major League Baseball (MLB), and the National Basketball Association (NBA).
Nike’s stock is up nearly 10% on news of its Q3 results. Prior to today (Dec. 20), Nike’s share price had declined 28% this year to $77.10 U.S.
