Shares of Nike (NKE 4.35%) rose today after investors reacted positively to the news that Bill Ackman’s Pershing Square Capital Management Fund had acquired a stake in the company, which was reported in Pershing Square’s 13-F filing last night. As a result, Nike shares rose 3.8% as of 11:43 a.m. ET on Thursday.

Nike is slowly looking like a value stock

Ackman is one of the most respected and sensational fund managers on Wall Street. One of the investments he is known for is his successful bet on Chipotle when the company was still suffering from the E. coli crisis.

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Investors seem to believe Ackman sees a similar value-add opportunity here. The sometimes activist investor has not taken an activist stake in the sneaker maker, owning less than 0.2% of the company. He bought 3.04 million shares in the second quarter, valued at about $250 million.

Ackman has not commented on the reasons why he bought Nike shares at this time, but we may hear some comments from him in a media interview in the near future. Nike is also one of the smallest positions in Pershing Square’s portfolio, representing only 2.2% of total holdings.

Will Ackman help Nike?

Ackman is unlikely to directly help Nike’s recovery – at least not without amassing a larger stake. However, investors appreciate it when prominent billionaires like Ackman buy shares, as it signals an opportunity for the value.

Nike still has a lot of work to do to start a recovery. CEO John Donahoe is under increasing pressure, but it would be a mistake to write off a company that has dominated its industry for the past generation.