NiSource, Inc $NI Shares Sold by DRW Securities LLC

Key Points

• DRW Securities LLC reduced its stake in NiSource, Inc. by 83.2%, holding 54,602 shares valued at approximately $2.19 million after selling 270,878 shares in the 1st quarter.
• Analysts have raised price targets for NiSource, with Wells Fargo increasing it to $45.00, while the consensus rating remains a "Moderate Buy" with a target price of $42.56.
• NiSource has declared a quarterly dividend of $0.28 per share, with a yield of 2.7%, scheduled for payment on November 20th, following an ex-dividend date of October 31st.

DRW Securities LLC trimmed its holdings in NiSource, Inc (NYSE:NI - Free Report) by 83.2% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 54,602 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 270,878 shares during the period. DRW Securities LLC's holdings in NiSource were worth $2,189,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. LPL Financial LLC raised its holdings in shares of NiSource by 29.9% in the first quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 234,234 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $9,390,000 after buying an additional 53,972 shares during the last quarter. Lincoln Capital Corp purchased a new stake in shares of NiSource in the first quarter valued at about $2,556,000. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of NiSource by 14.0% in the first quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 358,469 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $14,371,000 after acquiring an additional 43,947 shares in the last quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. purchased a new stake in shares of NiSource in the fourth quarter valued at about $2,955,000. Finally, Blair William & Co. IL boosted its holdings in shares of NiSource by 2.7% in the first quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 21,645 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $868,000 after acquiring an additional 575 shares in the last quarter. 91.64% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on NI. Barclays reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $44.00 target price (up previously from $42.00) on shares of NiSource in a report on Monday, August 4th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on NiSource from $43.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, May 8th. Wall Street Zen downgraded NiSource from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Saturday, August 9th. Guggenheim upped their price target on shares of NiSource from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of NiSource to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, August 11th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, NiSource currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $42.56.

NiSource Price Performance

NI traded down $0.31 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $41.81. 2,807,737 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,496,031. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32, a current ratio of 0.59 and a quick ratio of 0.48. The stock has a market capitalization of $19.68 billion, a PE ratio of 22.36, a P/E/G ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 0.60. The business's 50-day moving average price is $41.39 and its 200 day moving average price is $40.01. NiSource, Inc has a 1-year low of $33.03 and a 1-year high of $43.51.

NiSource (NYSE:NI - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.21 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $1.16 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.16 billion. NiSource had a net margin of 14.46% and a return on equity of 8.25%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.21 earnings per share. As a group, equities 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 Thursday, November 20th. Investors of record on Friday, October 31st will be paid a dividend of $0.28 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 31st. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.7%. NiSource's dividend payout ratio is presently 59.57%.

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.