Verdict: Side-by-side breakdown using the Bull Rankings model. KTB scored 80.0, NKE scored 44.2 — KTB leads.
Compare another set
KTB
Kontoor Brands, Inc.
Apparel Manufacturing · Quality-Growth
80
$65.62 · $3.6B
fundamentals as of
Score gap
35.8
KTB leads
NKE
NIKE, Inc.
Footwear & Accessories · Quality-Growth
44.2
$34.71 · $51.6B
fundamentals as of
At a glance · who leads each dimension, on the model's own rules
CheapestKTB16.0x
Fastest growthKTB+34.3%
Strongest balance sheetNKE0.73
Highest qualityKTB81 / 100
Largest discount to fair valueKTB-53%
Side by side · every name on one set of axes
Growth against the P/E multiple. Up and to the right is cheaper and faster — the quality-growth idea in one picture. Points beyond the axis are pinned to the edge and marked off-scale rather than allowed to compress everything else.
The model, pillar by pillar (0–100 each)
KTB
stronger →← stronger
NKE
81
Qualityreturns · margins · balance sheet
73
79
Growthrevenue & earnings expansion
30
80
Valuevaluation vs sector peers
40
KTB is stronger on 3 of 3 pillars.
Fundamentals, head-to-head
KTB
NKE
$422mC
FCF
$2.2bB
+34.3%A
Rev
+0.2%C
2.06C
D/E
0.73B+
16.0xB+
P/E
16.7xB
1.89C+
PEG
1.48B
Winner per row is the stronger grade; where grades tie, the better figure breaks it. A true tie or a missing value shows no highlight.
Valuation · DCF cross-check
KTB
NKE
53% below
Price vs fair valuelower is cheaper
83% above
~-11%/yr
Growth the price impliesyr-1 FCF growth, fading to 4% · lower = less priced in
~17%/yr
+99%
1-yr DCF upside
-43%
+112%
5-yr DCF upside
-45%
+131%
10-yr DCF upside
-48%
The DCF is a cross-check on intrinsic value, separate from the quality-growth score above.
Model signals
KTB
Why this score
Durable high returns
NKE
The companies
KTBKontoor Brands, Inc.
Apparel Manufacturing · $65.62 · beta 0.90
Why now
Apparel Manufacturing · market cap $3.6b. Down 26% from 52-week high of $88.96 — deep drawdown territory. Revenue growing +34% — in hypergrowth territory. 10 sell-side analysts rate this a Buy with a mean 1-yr target of $97.50 (implying +49% upside).
Moat
ROE 43% — top-decile capital efficiency. Either pricing leverage, low capital intensity, or aggressive buybacks; the durability story depends on which. FCF converts 158% of net income, helped by cash released from working capital ($123m) that doesn't repeat every year.
Risk
D/E 2.06 is elevated — limits strategic flexibility and raises refinancing exposure if rates stay higher for longer.
NKENIKE, Inc.
Footwear & Accessories · $34.71 · beta 1.10
Why now
Footwear & Accessories · market cap $51.6b. Down 51% from 52-week high of $70.44 — deep drawdown territory. 36 sell-side analysts rate this a Hold with a mean 1-yr target of $38.04 (implying +10% upside).
Moat
ROE 22% is above 15% — the equity base is compounding at a rate the market struggles to discount accurately. $51.6b market cap gives the company enough scale to absorb fixed costs that subscale competitors can't, without yet being so large that growth has to come from acquisition.
Risk
Down 51% from the 52-week high — the market is pricing in something the screen can't see; verify the bear case before sizing up. Dividend payout 79% of earnings on a 4.7% yield — distribution coverage is thin; one earnings stumble could force a dividend cut.
Verdict — model-derived comparison
Generating verdict… typically 5–10 seconds
Not investment advice. The Bull Rankings publishes a quantitative ranking model and accompanying analysis for general informational purposes only. Nothing on this page is a recommendation to buy, sell, or hold any security; nothing is personalized to your circumstances, risk tolerance, or tax situation. Investing carries the risk of loss — invest at your own risk and consider consulting a licensed financial professional before acting on anything you read here. See terms and methodology for full disclosures.
Where KTB and NKE diverge
On the headline score the gap is 35.8 points in favor of KTB. The widest single difference is Growth, where KTB leads by 48.7 points.
GrowthKTB 78.7 · NKE 30.0KTB +48.7
ValueKTB 80.4 · NKE 39.7KTB +40.7
QualityKTB 80.8 · NKE 72.7KTB +8.1
Pillars run 0–100. Value is judged against each company's own sector, so a Value score is a statement about a company relative to its own industry rather than to the other name here. A wide Value gap usually means the market already prices the difference in quality or growth — which is the trade-off this comparison comes down to.
Common questions
Is KTB or NKE the better stock?
KTB scores higher: KTB 80.0, NKE 44.2 out of 100 on the Bull Rankings quality-growth score, which blends business quality, growth and valuation into one number. A higher score means a stronger business at a more reasonable price — it is not a price target or a recommendation.
Where do KTB and NKE differ most?
The widest gap is growth, where KTB leads by 49 points on the 0–100 pillar scale. KTB leads all three pillars, so the gap is broad rather than a single-measure difference.
How are KTB and NKE scored?
Each carries the same 0–100 quality-growth score used everywhere on the site, built from three pillars — quality (profitability and returns on capital), growth (revenue and earnings), and value (what you pay for them) — combined as a geometric mean, so a weak pillar cannot be papered over by a strong one.
How current is this comparison?
The whole universe is re-scored every trading day after the US market close, so the scores and fundamentals here reflect the latest published edition.