Nike could be the next target for activists after Starbucks – reports

Nike (NYSE:NKE) could be the potential next target for an activist after the Starbucks (SBUX) CEO news on Tuesday.

Former Deckers (DECK) CEO Dave Powers would be a great candidate to take over as the shoe company’s CEO, especially after he retired as the Deckers CEO this month, Gordon Haskett’s Don Bilson wrote in a note on Wednesday.

Making an executive change at Nike is not the same as at Starbucks, as Phil Knight controls the shoe behemoth’s board, Bilson added.

Bilson’s idea was supported on Wednesday after Dealreporter highlighted that a 13F filing from UBS indicated the bank bought ~ 11 million shares of Nike in Q2, bringing its total stake to 27 million.

UBS is interesting because it’s sometimes associated with activists taking swap positions through certain banks, including the most prominent activist Elliott Management, which sometimes uses UBS.

Nike (NKE) shares edged lower by 0.7% on Wednesday after advancing 5% on Tuesday, likely in the wake of the Starbucks news.