Nike Air Jordan shoes are seen in the store in Krakow, Poland on August 26, 2021.Nike Air Jordan shoes are seen in the store in Krakow, Poland on August 26, 2021.

Nike beat Wall Street's earnings and sales expectations for the fiscal fourth-quarter as the sneaker giant overcame a Covid lockdown in China and tougher climate for consumers in the US.

There was a 1% rise in shares after the market closed.

The company didn't give a forecast for the year to come. Disruptions have slowed shipments of shoes and apparel across the globe.

According to a survey of analysts by Refinitiv, Nike did better than Wall Street anticipated in the fourth quarter.

  • Earnings per share: 90 centsvs. 81 cents expected
  • Revenue: $12.23 billion vs. $12.06 billion expected

The company reported net income for the three-month period ended May 31 of over $1 billion, or 90 cents per share, compared with over $1 billion, or 93 cents per share, a year ago.

The sales fell to $12.23 billion from $12.34 billion.

Nike is in the middle of a strategy shift as the company sells more merchandise directly to shoppers and trims back the amount it sells to wholesale partners. The company's direct sales grew in the third quarter. The business trends of Nike were different. There was a decline in sales to $6 billion.

The CFO said that the strategy is paying off.

He said in a news release that Nike is better positioned than ever to drive long-term growth and serve consumers directly at scale.

Total sales in North America fell by 5%.

It took a bigger hit in Greater China. In the year-ago period, total sales in the country increased by 2%.

There are a number of challenges facing the athleticwear and sneaker company. Some consumers may trade down to lower-priced brands as the price of gas and groceries increases. There are challenges in the supply chain that cause merchandise to move slowly around the globe.

The three-month period saw inventory rise to $8.4 billion, up 23% from the year-ago period.

On Monday, shares of Nike were down by 2%. Nike shares are down 34% this year. The S&P 500 is down 18% during the same time. The company is worth $173 billion.

The board of Nike approved a new stock buy back program this month. The company's share buy back program will end in the next fiscal year.

You can read the earnings release here.

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