Colin Kaepernick knelt for the national anthem for the first time a decade ago. Nike rushed to embrace him then and has been paying a heavy price ever since, albeit with a brief spike in 2021, signified by plunging profits and a stock crash of 78 percent since that high.
The ultra-woke sportwear company is set to leave the S&P 100 later this month as part of the index’s quarterly rebalance, ending a nearly 18-year run in the indicator.
Dell Technologies (DELL), Palo Alto Networks (PANW), Arista Networks (ANET) and SanDisk (SNDK) will replace Nike and three other companies.
Forbes notes Nike’s fate comes after years of underperformance. It outlines some of the factors involved:
This reflects Nike’s struggles with over-reliance on old franchises, a flawed direct-to-consumer strategy, weakened wholesale ties, and rising competition from brands like Hoka and On, alongside a weak China market.
The S&P 100 shift also highlights a broader market trend favoring tech and AI infrastructure over traditional consumer giants.
Nike stock traded this summer around levels investors had not seen in more than a decade and is now about to suffer another symbolic blow.
It all harkens back to the time Nike’s favorability ratings took a 15-point hit when the sportswear brand chose to associate itself with the national-anthem-dissing, perma-kneeling, afro-sporting NFL star Colin Kaepernick and its “Let’s Do It” campaign.
Even President Trump felt moved to comment:
Specifically, to fans who believe Colin Kaepernick has disrespected law enforcement, the military, the flag, anthem, and just about everything that makes America great, the link was too much.
They have been walking – and running – away ever since.
As Breitbart News reported just last month, Nike shares have been steadily falling from their 2021 peak, resulting in a catastrophic $200 billion loss in market value that can all be traced back to the ultra woke embrace of Kaepernick.
Those staggering economic figures result from massive declines in sales, as the company has failed to keep up with shifting consumer preferences and rising competition.
Now the company is to leave the S&P 100 in what is the final humiliation for a once totemic brand.