Nike has regained street credibility, at least as far as Jim Kramer is concerned. “I’m going to do a bull call here. I’ve never really been bothering Nike stock in a long time. I think it’s time to buy a Nike just like Lululemon gets off,” Cramer said on CNBC’s “Squawk on the Street.” In fact, Cramer is so optimistic about Nike’s recovery potential that he is “trying to figure out” whether he belongs to a charitable trust, a portfolio used by CNBC Investing Club. The iconic sports apparel brand has struggled for the past few years as it countered the onslaught of issues such as competition and excess inventory that have resulted from disruptions in the pandemic supply chain. Furthermore, the decision was not planned to lean heavily towards consumer channels and not rely on third-party retailers in the process. “The important thing about Nike was stock. Are they low enough? You have to predict… you have to predict the bottom,” Kramer said, citing partnerships with major retailers like Footlocker and its high-quality company, Dicks Sporting Goods, as a positive to its recovery efforts. Dick’s Sporting Goods completed the acquisition of its popular sneaker chain this week as part of a strategic plan to drive the Nike wholesale sneaker market down. Kramer isn’t the only one watching Nike’s comeback in real time on Wall Street. On Wednesday, TD Cowen analysts praised inventory management as one of Nike’s turnaround catalysts, upgrading their stock from hold to purchase ratings. According to Factset, about half of the analysts covering Nike have comparable ratings on their stocks compared to almost 70% from three years ago. As part of the upgrade, TD Cowen has raised Nike’s price target from $62 to $85 per share. Analysts said Nike’s margin recovery is “undervalued,” and that it is gradually improving trends for Nike and its important Jordanian brands and promoting Nike’s new management execution. Nike CEO Elliot Hill took over in October last year and is working on the company’s rebound. Cramer is also bullish on the hills. “Eliot Hill understands tradition,” he said. “He’s real. He’s getting his magic back. There’s magic there.”
