Blueshift Asset Management LLC Purchases Shares of 7,717 NiSource, Inc (NYSE:NI)

Key Points

• Blueshift Asset Management LLC has acquired 7,717 shares of NiSource, Inc, valued at approximately $309,000, marking a significant investment in the utilities provider during the 1st quarter.
• NiSource recently reported $0.98 earnings per share, exceeding expectations, although its revenue of $2.03 billion fell short of forecasts.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.28 per share, with a yield of 2.6%, and has a dividend payout ratio of 60.54%.

Blueshift Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in NiSource, Inc (NYSE:NI - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 7,717 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $309,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Lincoln Capital Corp acquired a new stake in shares of NiSource during the 1st quarter worth $2,556,000. Capital International Inc. CA acquired a new stake in shares of NiSource during the 4th quarter worth $34,612,000. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of NiSource by 14.0% during the 1st quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 358,469 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $14,371,000 after buying an additional 43,947 shares during the last quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. acquired a new stake in shares of NiSource during the 4th quarter worth $2,955,000. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of NiSource by 6.5% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 11,448,075 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $419,765,000 after buying an additional 700,747 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.64% of the company's stock.

NiSource Stock Down 0.0%

Shares of NiSource stock traded down $0.01 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $41.83. 360,432 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,529,066. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $40.31 and a 200-day simple moving average of $39.41. The company has a quick ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 0.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17. The company has a market cap of $19.69 billion, a PE ratio of 22.73, a PEG ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 0.53. NiSource, Inc has a twelve month low of $30.66 and a twelve month high of $43.51.

NiSource (NYSE:NI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.22 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.21 by $0.01. NiSource had a net margin of 14.67% and a return on equity of 8.41%. The business had revenue of $1.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.16 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.21 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that NiSource, Inc will post 1.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

NiSource Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 20th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 31st will be given 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 dividend yield of 2.7%. NiSource's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 60.54%.

Insider Activity

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently issued reports on NI shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on NiSource from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on NiSource from $43.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, May 8th. Guggenheim increased their price target on NiSource from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, May 8th. Barclays reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $44.00 price target (up from $42.00) on shares of NiSource in a report on Monday. Finally, BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on NiSource from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, April 28th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, NiSource presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $41.70.

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.