Jim Cramer on Nike: "I Don't Know When This Stock Will Make a Comeback, But I bet It Happens in the Next Year"

NIKE, Inc. (NYSE:NKE) is one of the stocks that was on Jim Cramer’s radar. Cramer highlighted the role and strategy of the company’s CEO during the episode, as he commented:

“How about Elliott Hill at Nike? This situation’s much more complicated. Elliott inherited a broken Nike, a company that literally seemed to have lost every bit of its former mojo…. Nike lost it. Under Elliott’s predecessor, the company became a dull, non-inventive, mediocre sneaker play, with its product being pushed through the digital channel, even though most people like to try on a pair of expensive shoes. Elliott had to dismantle North America, which had been divided into men’s, women’s, and children’s shoes, returning the business to sports verticals like running, basketball, international football.

He had to clean up hundreds of millions of dollars in old, not that attractive inventory. He had to patch up destroyed relations with retailers, and he pulled it off in a little more than a year’s time. It was incredible. The Nike US business had some killer numbers in the quarter announced last night. The turns at hand. So why did the stock get annihilated then, down more than 10%? Because the previous regime didn’t just screw up the US, it put China on a course of destruction that’s come home to roost right on Elliott’s head… And yes, it was that bad.

Go read the conference call. When you do, you hear this line, ‘We always believed that our growth will come through sport, but the reality is we’ve become a lifestyle brand competing on price in China.’ Lifestyle brand? Nike? Competing on price? That’s for mortals. Nike’s immortal. Numbers were horrendous… This is awful. It’s simply too hard to turn things around in one or two quarters, even though Nike’s US business has already found its footing. Elliott’s now setting his sights on China. You either believe he can win, or if you don’t, you have to sell. I don’t know when this stock will make a comeback, but I bet it happens in the next year. And when it does, the $58 stock was headed to $80. However, if you’re not a believer in Elliott, then just sit this one out because I’ve got a feeling you won’t have the patience to wait for the turn.”

NIKE, Inc. (NYSE:NKE) is an athletic and casual footwear, apparel, equipment, and accessories company that sells its products under brands, including Nike, Jordan, and Converse.

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Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.