Cerity Partners LLC Sells 36,101 Shares of NiSource, Inc (NYSE:NI)

Cerity Partners LLC decreased its position in shares of NiSource, Inc (NYSE:NI - Free Report) by 31.9% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 77,013 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 36,101 shares during the period. Cerity Partners LLC's holdings in NiSource were worth $3,087,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of NiSource by 4.4% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 57,793,581 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $2,124,492,000 after buying an additional 2,459,452 shares in the last quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in NiSource by 10.1% during the 4th quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 21,370,032 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $785,563,000 after acquiring an additional 1,965,334 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in NiSource by 6.5% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 11,448,075 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $419,765,000 after acquiring an additional 700,747 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC raised its holdings in NiSource by 185.0% in the 4th quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 9,244,744 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $339,837,000 after acquiring an additional 6,001,486 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. lifted its position in shares of NiSource by 49.5% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 8,199,873 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $301,427,000 after acquiring an additional 2,714,262 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 91.64% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Melanie B. Berman sold 6,227 shares of NiSource stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the executive vice president owned 28,882 shares in the company, 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 Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Michael E. Jesanis sold 6,178 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $37.81, for a total value of $233,590.18. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 18,541 shares in the company, valued at $701,035.21. This trade represents a 24.99% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 16,405 shares of company stock worth $631,939 over the last three months. Insiders own 0.24% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently commented on the company. Guggenheim raised their price target on NiSource from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 8th. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of NiSource from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, March 21st. Barclays upped their price target on shares of NiSource from $38.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, April 25th. Mizuho lifted their price objective on shares of NiSource from $42.00 to $44.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 26th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on NiSource from $43.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $41.50.

NiSource Price Performance

NI stock opened at $40.92 on Friday. NiSource, Inc has a 1 year low of $30.22 and a 1 year high of $41.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 0.52 and a quick ratio of 0.45. The stock has a market cap of $19.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.12, a P/E/G ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 0.54. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $39.42 and a 200 day simple moving average of $38.91.

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

NiSource Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 20th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 31st will be paid a $0.28 dividend. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.74%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 31st. NiSource's dividend payout ratio is currently 60.54%.

NiSource Company 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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.