Nike on Thursday posted a quarterly profit that handily beat Wall Street's expectations and said future demand for its apparel and shoes rose.
The athletic apparel maker's shares rose more than 8 percent after the closing bell, following the news. What is Nike's stock doing now? (Click here for the latest after-hours quote.)
Earnings excluding items rose to 73 cents per share from 60 cents a share in the year-earlier period.
Revenue improved about 9 percent to $6.19 billion from $5.66 billion a year ago.
Wall Street had expected Nike to report earnings excluding items of 67 cents a share on $6.23 billion in revenue, according to a consensus estimate from Thomson Reuters.
Orders for Nike-branded shoes and clothing scheduled for delivery from March through July 2013, known as futures orders, rose 6 percent compared to orders reported for the same period last year. In North America, the company's biggest market, orders were up 11 percent.
"That is phenomenal", said Paul Swinand, retail analyst with Morningstar. He said one of the biggest challenges for the company is to grow in its more mature markets, and the strong demand in North America shows it can do that.
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