Stifel Raises Nike's Price Target Ahead Of Q2 Print

Jim Duffy of Stifel maintained a Buy rating on shares of

Friday while raising the price target to $110 from a previous $100 ahead of the company's second quarter results on December 18. According to Duffy, Nike's fundamentals remain a “standout” within the consumer discretionary space given strong demand for performance athletic wear. “A key thesis of ours is that strong lifestyle brands have opportunity to capture both more share and more margin with well executed direct to consumer strategies,” Duffy wrote. “This is being compounded by the rapid pace at which consumers are embracing ecommerce and we expect Nike remains a prime beneficiary.” Finally, Duffy states that shares of Nike should be viewed as a “solid core holding” heading in to 2015 as fundamentals remain strong and shares deserve to continue trading at a premium multiple.