Deutsche Bank AG Sells 2,224,377 Shares of NiSource, Inc (NYSE:NI)

Key Points

• Deutsche Bank AG has reduced its stake in NiSource, Inc by 13.2%, selling 2,224,377 shares and now owns approximately 3.10% of the company valued at $585.5 million.
• NiSource recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.28 per share, with an ex-dividend date of July 31st, representing a 2.7% yield.
• Several analysts have increased their price targets for NiSource, with BMO Capital Markets, JPMorgan, and Wells Fargo setting new targets between $43 and $45, and maintaining an "outperform" or "overweight" rating.

Deutsche Bank AG lessened its stake in shares of NiSource, Inc (NYSE:NI - Free Report) by 13.2% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 14,605,075 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 2,224,377 shares during the period. Deutsche Bank AG owned 3.10% of NiSource worth $585,517,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. World Investment Advisors increased its stake in NiSource by 25.8% during the 4th quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 8,247 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $303,000 after purchasing an additional 1,689 shares in the last quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN grew its holdings in shares of NiSource by 11.1% during the fourth quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 775,555 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $28,509,000 after buying an additional 77,484 shares during the last quarter. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of NiSource during the fourth quarter worth about $4,991,000. Federated Hermes Inc. raised its holdings in shares of NiSource by 2.2% in the 4th quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 73,305 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $2,695,000 after acquiring an additional 1,555 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of NiSource by 49.5% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 8,199,873 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $301,427,000 after acquiring an additional 2,714,262 shares during the last quarter. 91.64% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on NiSource from $43.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. Guggenheim lifted their target price on NiSource from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 8th. Barclays reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $44.00 price target (up from $42.00) on shares of NiSource in a research report on Monday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on NiSource from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on shares of NiSource from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $41.70.

NiSource Stock Performance

NI stock traded down $0.11 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $42.26. The company's stock had a trading volume of 3,851,050 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,466,903. The stock has a market cap of $19.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.48, a PEG ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 0.53. The company has a quick ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 0.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $40.43 and its 200 day moving average price is $39.47. NiSource, Inc has a 1 year low of $30.66 and a 1 year 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 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.21 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $1.16 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.16 billion. NiSource had a net margin of 14.46% and a return on equity of 8.25%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.21 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that NiSource, Inc will post 1.91 EPS for the current year.

NiSource Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 20th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 31st will be paid a $0.28 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 31st. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.7%. NiSource's dividend payout ratio is presently 60.54%.

Insider Activity at NiSource

In other NiSource news, EVP Melanie B. Berman sold 6,227 shares of the 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. This represents 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 this link. Also, Director Michael E. Jesanis sold 6,178 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on 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 approximately $701,035.21. The trade was a 24.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 16,405 shares of company stock worth $631,939. 0.24% of the stock is owned by company 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.