Jayson Tatum wearing Nike during the 2021 Olympics in Tokyo. (Getty Images)

Even the 2024 Paris Olympics can’t save Nike

Stock plunges 20% as the company forecasts its first decline for an Olympic quarter in decades

6/28/24 12:29PM

Nike’s stock is getting hammered Friday, dropping 20% after the company gave underwhelming guidance for its new fiscal year and said fourth-quarter sales fell more than expected. During the earnings call, CFO Matthew Friend dropped a bomb: Nike’s sales during its current quarter – the one that will include the next Olympic Games in Paris – are expected to drop 10%.

That would be the first time Nike’s sales fell during an Olympic quarter since at least the turn of the century. An analysis of financial data going back to the 2000 summer games in Sydney shows that Nike’s sales during Olympic quarters have risen an average of 9.9%, slightly higher than an average of 7.9% during non-Olympic quarters. So a drop of 10% is especially abnormal.

Olympic season is usually a time when consumers around the world are inundated with Swooshes slapped across athletes’ uniforms, warmups, and shoes. The Team USA online store and Nike.com are already chock full of Nike Olympics gear. But after their new track and field uniforms were called too revealing even for professionals, it seems consumers may be hesitant to add to their carts. Following the recent new Major League Baseball uniforms debacle, it’s not a good look for the brand.

“We're very excited about the Olympics coming,” Nike CEO John Donahoe said early in the call. Later, he added: “We can't wait to bring all this Olympics product to life across the games and in more than 8,000 doors worldwide. And throughout, our brand storytelling will be bold and clear, with sport and athletes at the very center of it all, from brand voice to retail activations.”

But those potential “retail activations” didn’t matter nearly as much as the revenue forecast to investors, who slashed some $28 billion off Nike’s market cap as of midday Friday.

Max Knoblauch10/24/25

Premium seats help push airlines higher following third-quarter results

Shares of American Airlines are climbing toward the carrier’s best trading day since August 12, when ultra-budget rival Spirit issued its initial warning about its ability to survive. American’s shares are up more than 7% on Friday afternoon.

Investors’ optimism comes a day after American posted a better-than-expected full-year earnings forecast. In a call with investors, American said that it’s ramping up its premium cabin offerings.

“Our ability to grow capacity in premium markets will be further supported as we take delivery of new aircraft and reconfigure our existing fleet. These efforts will allow us to grow our premium seats at nearly two times the rate of main cabin seats,” CEO Robert Isom said. American CFO Devin May said that nose-to-tail retrofits of certain wide-body jets will bump the number of premium seats available on those planes by 25%.

Extra legroom has been a boon for major carriers, particularly this quarter. Delta Air Lines said its premium product revenue grew 9% in Q3, compared to a 4% drop in economy seat revenue. Similarly, United Airlines said its premium revenue grew 6%, outpacing economy. Shares of both airlines were up more than 3% on Friday.

Carriers with less exposure to first- and business-class tickets like Southwest Airlines and JetBlue didn’t see the same amount of momentum on the day.