Nike shares hit a fresh all-time high on Monday, the stock gets an upgrade from Piper Jaffray and Susquehanna

Shares of Nike Inc (NKE) rose the most in seven weeks yesterday, after two research and analysis firms upgraded the athletic footwear and apparel manufacturer, while also raising their price targets on its stock.

Nike shares closed higher for the second time in the past seven trading sessions in New York on Monday. It has also been the sharpest daily surge since June 29th. The stock went up 3.05% ($2.43) to $82.18, after touching an intraday high at $82.42 and also a fresh all-time high.

Shares of Nike Inc have risen 31.38% so far in 2018 compared with a 6.86% gain for the underlying index, S&P 500 (SPX).

In 2017, Nike Inc’s stock surged 23.06%, thus, it again outperformed the S&P 500, which registered a 19.42% return.

Piper Jaffray analyst Erinn Murphy raised Nikes rating to “Overweight” from “Neutral” previously and also boosted her price target on the stock to $93 from $72, as she cited in a research note that the risk profile of owning Nike shares had “considerably diminished”.

According to Murphy, the company is expected to make a transition from downward EPS revisions to upward earnings revisions, as market landscape in North America stabilizes. Additionally, strong margins and sales as well as improving brand momentum are also expected to support growth.

Meanwhile, Susquehanna analyst Sam Poser raised Nikes rating to “Positive” from “Neutral” previously and revised up his price target on the stock to $93 from $78, as he noted Nike was gaining market share from Adidas as well as other competitors.

Poser also expects Nike to gain market share within the family footwear channel due to improving product offering and flow.

As a result, the analyst is rather confident that the sporting giant will be able to meet its $50 billion revenue objective for the fiscal year 2023.

According to CNN Money, the 33 analysts, offering 12-month forecasts regarding Nike Incs stock price, have a median target of $82.00, with a high estimate of $90.00 and a low estimate of $50.00. The median estimate represents a 0.22% downside compared to the closing price of $82.18 on August 20th.

The same media also reported that 17 out of 37 surveyed investment analysts had rated Nike Incs stock as “Hold”, while 14 – as “Buy”. On the other hand, 1 analyst had recommended selling the stock.

Daily and Weekly Pivot Levels

With the help of the Camarilla calculation method, todays levels of importance for the Nike stock are presented as follows:

R1 – $82.31
R2 – $82.45
R3 (Range Resistance – Sell) – $82.58
R4 (Long Breakout) – $82.99
R5 (Breakout Target 1) – $83.46
R6 (Breakout Target 2) – $83.67

S1 – $82.05
S2 – $81.91
S3 (Range Support – Buy) – $81.78
S4 (Short Breakout) – $81.37
S5 (Breakout Target 1) – $80.90
S6 (Breakout Target 2) – $80.69

By using the traditional method of calculation, the weekly levels of importance for Nike Inc (NKE) are presented as follows:

Central Pivot Point – $80.00
R1 – $80.89
R2 – $82.02
R3 – $82.91
R4 – $83.79

S1 – $78.87
S2 – $77.98
S3 – $76.85
S4 – $75.71