Nike Inc., the world's top maker of athletic shoes, on Thursday reported a 60 percent rise in quarterly profit as it repaired ties with its main U.S. distributor and saw strong gains from overseas.
Nike shares were mostly unchanged after the company posted a net profit of $200 million, or 74 cents per share in its fiscal third quarter ended Feb. 29, compared with a profit of $125 million, or 47 cents per share, a year earlier.
The results came in at the top end of the range predicted by the Beaverton, Oregon-based company when it raised its outlook 10 days ago.
Analysts had expected, on average, for Nike to post third-quarter earnings per share of 73 cents on $2.9 billion in sales, according to estimates compiled by Reuters Research, a unit of Reuters Group Plc.
Revenue rose 21 percent to $2.9 billion from $2.4 billion.
Mark Parker, Nike's brand president, said the company was selling more of its $100-plus performance footwear, such as its Nike Shox or Zoom Vapor trainers, a trend that the rest of the U.S. footwear was seeing as well.
"It's more than momentum or the ephemeral hot streak that can sometimes boost temporarily one brand or another," Parker told analysts on a conference call.
The results also reflected Nike's progress in resolving its long-running dispute with its main distributor, Foot Locker Inc., over pricing and promotion.
"The results reflect an improved relationship with its key customer Foot Locker, particularly in high-end footwear," said Wells Fargo analyst John Shanley.
The dispute, which began in 2002, had kept high-end Nike shoes off shelves of the United States' biggest sneaker chain, leading Nike to lose sales and market share to arch-rival Reebok International Ltd.
Nike also said that future orders for its athletic footwear and apparel in the current quarter, a key gauge of future demand, grew to $4.7 billion, 10 percent higher from a year earlier.
"Growing consumer demand for Nike footwear and apparel in our international markets helped drive the 9.9 percent increase in worldwide futures," Nike Chief Executive Phil Knight said in a statement, "Additionally, we are pleased by the continued strength of our U.S. business, which recorded its strongest futures orders growth in eight quarters."
Much of that rise was also due to favorable exchange rates, as a weaker U.S. currency helped boost earnings translated into dollars.
Shares in Nike were unchanged from their New York Stock Exchange close, where they ended up 67 cents, or 0.9 percent, at $76.82.
