NIKE (NKE): The $4B sneaker purge & the $230M cost of abandoning DTC [Q3 2026]

Nike’s Q3 2026 net income plunged 35%, but the footwear giant claims the pain is an entirely intentional move to save the brand's prestige. In ~10 minutes:• Why pulling $4B in Air Force 1s and Dunks was necessary• The $230M severance charge attached to reversing their DTC-first strategy• How an accounting tax anomaly artificially deepened the 35% profit drop• Why management is deliberately choking off Q4 sell-in to Greater ChinaCEO Elliott Hill compared Nike’s current reality to FC Barcelona's Camp Nou stadium—trying to win matches on the pitch while heavy construction happens right above the players 🏗️. We break down the financial cost of unwinding the company's direct-to-consumer infrastructure, the steep after-hours stock selloff, and why true margin expansion won't arrive until fiscal 2027.NIKE, Inc. (NKE) | Q3 FY2026AI-assisted production. Feedback/ticker requests: https://x.com/EarnUnscripted.