ANB Bank Invests $255,000 in NiSource, Inc (NYSE:NI)

ANB Bank purchased a new stake in NiSource, Inc (NYSE:NI - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund purchased 6,367 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $255,000.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Canada Post Corp Registered Pension Plan purchased a new position in NiSource in the fourth quarter worth approximately $27,000. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB increased its holdings in NiSource by 64.2% in the first quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 765 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 299 shares during the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC raised its stake in NiSource by 48.8% in the first quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 811 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 266 shares in the last quarter. Quent Capital LLC lifted its holdings in NiSource by 44.7% during the 1st quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 1,003 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 310 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Optiver Holding B.V. boosted its position in shares of NiSource by 105.0% during the 4th quarter. Optiver Holding B.V. now owns 1,281 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $47,000 after acquiring an additional 656 shares in the last quarter. 91.64% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

NiSource Stock Performance

NiSource stock traded up $0.31 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $42.21. 2,934,764 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,082,629. The firm has a market cap of $19.87 billion, a PE ratio of 22.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.84 and a beta of 0.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a current ratio of 0.52. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $39.78 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $39.11. NiSource, Inc has a twelve month low of $30.53 and a twelve month high of $42.26.

NiSource (NYSE:NI - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 7th. The utilities provider reported $0.98 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.90 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $2.03 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.32 billion. NiSource had a net margin of 14.67% and a return on equity of 8.41%. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.85 EPS. Equities analysts predict that NiSource, Inc will post 1.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

NiSource Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 20th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 31st will be issued a dividend of $0.28 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 31st. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.65%. NiSource's dividend payout ratio is currently 60.54%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Barclays boosted their target price on NiSource from $38.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, April 25th. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on shares of NiSource from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, April 28th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of NiSource from $43.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of NiSource from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, Guggenheim raised their price objective on NiSource from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, May 8th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $41.50.

Insider Transactions at NiSource

In related news, EVP Melanie B. Berman sold 6,227 shares of NiSource stock in a transaction on Friday, May 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $39.42, for a total transaction of $245,468.34. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 28,882 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,138,528.44. The trade was a 17.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Michael E. Jesanis sold 6,178 shares of NiSource stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $37.81, for a total value of $233,590.18. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 18,541 shares of the company's stock, valued at $701,035.21. This trade represents a 24.99% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 16,405 shares of company stock valued at $631,939. 0.24% of the stock is owned by insiders.

NiSource Profile

NiSource Inc, an energy holding company, operates as a regulated natural gas and electric utility company in the United States. It operates in two segments, Gas Distribution Operations and Electric Operations. The company distributes natural gas to approximately 3.3 million customers through approximately 55,000 miles of distribution main pipeline and the associated individual customer service lines; and 1,000 miles of transmission main pipeline in northern Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Kentucky, and Maryland.