The coronavirus pandemic made revenue and profit growth much harder to find for investors, but there have been outliers maintaining growth through the worst of the outbreak. Here are two examples.
The iconic athleisure brand Nike (NYSE: NKE) is among the most stable and consistent revenue growers on the public markets. Sales for the quarter that ended in February grew by 7%, and earnings rose by a strong 15% (not including one-time costs associated with selling its South American operations and switching to a distribution model there). Nike was able to effectively offset brick-and-mortar shutdowns by rapidly shifting inventory to online channels and growing digital sales by 36%.New CEO John Donahoe's past experience in leading eBay certainly provides valuable insight for streamlining Nike's shift to e-commerce; it shows in growth continuing despite a worldwide pandemic.
There is reason to think growth can pick up from here. With roughly 55% of Nike's sales coming from Europe and Asia, revenue for the latest quarter was severely challenged by shutdowns and travel restrictions on the two continents. The result: A 22-quarter streak of double-digit sales growth in Asia abruptly ended as revenue in Asia dipped 5% (Europe managed to grow 11%). With many of those stores open again, it's reasonable to think Nike will soon be back to its consistent and impressive global growth.