Nike (NKE) faces a seemingly slower than planned pace of recovery and continues to witness quarter to quarter variability in progress, Oppenheimer said in a Wednesday note.

Oppenheimer removed the company's stock as a Top Pick from its coverage, but said that it remains a believer in the intermediate to longer-term turnaround potential for Nike, viewing recent repositioning actions by the company's leadership as "admirable."

The brokerage further said that Dick's Sporting Goods (DKS) offered a better, nearer-term investment play with domestic athleisure and the company represented more effective means to capitalize upon underlying progress at Nike.

Looking ahead, Nike expects fiscal Q4 net revenue decline of 2% to 4% compared to Wall Street view of a 1.9% growth, with modest growth in North America largely offset by declines of about 20% in Greater China, Oppenheimer noted.

The firm maintained its outperform rating on Nike.

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