NiSource, Inc (NYSE:NI) Position Increased by Asset Management One Co. Ltd.

Asset Management One Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of NiSource, Inc (NYSE:NI - Free Report) by 14.0% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 358,469 shares of the utilities provider's stock after acquiring an additional 43,947 shares during the period. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. owned approximately 0.08% of NiSource worth $14,371,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its stake in NiSource by 110.9% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 2,273 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $83,000 after acquiring an additional 1,195 shares in the last quarter. Capital International Inc. CA bought a new stake in NiSource during the 4th quarter valued at $34,612,000. California Public Employees Retirement System raised its stake in NiSource by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 2,075,372 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $76,291,000 after acquiring an additional 43,608 shares in the last quarter. Summit Global Investments bought a new stake in NiSource during the 4th quarter valued at $4,035,000. Finally, Hartree Partners LP bought a new stake in NiSource during the 4th quarter valued at $3,977,000. Institutional investors own 91.64% of the company's stock.

NiSource Trading Up 1.0%

Shares of NI traded up $0.40 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $40.01. The stock had a trading volume of 7,013,702 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,136,355. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $39.28 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $38.54. The firm has a market cap of $18.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.69 and a beta of 0.54. The company has a current ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17. NiSource, Inc has a fifty-two week low of $28.42 and a fifty-two week high of $41.45.

NiSource (NYSE:NI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The utilities provider reported $0.98 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.90 by $0.08. NiSource had a net margin of 14.67% and a return on equity of 8.41%. The business had revenue of $2.03 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.32 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.85 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that NiSource, Inc will post 1.91 EPS for the current year.

NiSource Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 20th. Stockholders 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.80%. NiSource's dividend payout ratio is 60.54%.

Insider Activity at NiSource

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

NI has been the topic of a number of research reports. Guggenheim boosted their price objective on NiSource from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on 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. boosted their price objective on NiSource from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. UBS Group boosted their price objective on NiSource from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, March 21st. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on NiSource from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $41.50.

About NiSource

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.