Nike stock is a world leading consumer clothing line, focusing on sports recreation. Nike trades on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) and the stock symbol is NKE. The company is headquartered in Beaverton, Oregon and in the past 20+ years has given investors over 4476% to shareholders in addition to regular dividend payouts and stock splits. Nike offers some of the most stylish and classic looks for athlets in all sports. Investors in the stocks also own a piece of one of the strongest brands in the consumer discretionary industry. It faces competition from a variety of companies, but most recently the most aggressive competition has come from Under Armour (NYSE: UA).

Nike stock is an important investment consideration in the consumer discretionary sector. Nike Inc is well known for its player endorsements, like Michael Jordan and Tiger Woods. The Air Jordan is one of the highest grossing pair of sneakers of all time. Nike Inc also offers products in running, training, basketball, soccer, sport-inspired urban shoes and children's shoes. As well as shoes designed for tennis, golf, baseball, football, lacrosse, walking, outdoor activities, skateboarding, bicycling, volleyball, wrestling, cheerleading, aquatic activities, and other athletic and recreational endeavors. The company has managed to use its brand power, despite the heavy marketing costs associated with it, to earn margins of 9-12% on average.

Nike stock is a popular a choice for investors because of its ability to continue to grow and strengthen its brand in the United States and the world, in spite of fierce global and local competition. Investors in Nike stock own part of just less than 500 million shares trading on the NYSE. Institutions own a good portion of outstanding shares, holding about 70-75% of outstanding shares in 2008. Nike stock offers a great dividend to provide income and growth to investors of all times.