HF Advisory Group LLC Raises Position in NiSource, Inc $NI

Key Points

• HF Advisory Group LLC increased its stake in NiSource, Inc by 15.8%, acquiring an additional 6,910 shares, valuing its holdings at approximately $2,039,000.
• NiSource recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.28, with a dividend yield of 2.8%, to be paid on November 20th.
• The company's earnings report revealed an EPS of $0.22, exceeding estimates and indicating a 14.46% net margin during the last quarter.

HF Advisory Group LLC boosted its stake in NiSource, Inc (NYSE:NI - Free Report) by 15.8% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 50,548 shares of the utilities provider's stock after buying an additional 6,910 shares during the period. HF Advisory Group LLC's holdings in NiSource were worth $2,039,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of NI. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB lifted its holdings in NiSource by 64.2% in the first quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 765 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 299 shares during the period. Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in NiSource by 48.8% in the first quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 811 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 266 shares during the period. Quent Capital LLC increased its stake in shares of NiSource by 44.7% during the first quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 1,003 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 310 shares in the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group increased its stake in shares of NiSource by 57.3% during the first quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 1,370 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $55,000 after purchasing an additional 499 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hemington Wealth Management increased its stake in shares of NiSource by 39.4% during the first quarter. Hemington Wealth Management now owns 1,551 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $62,000 after purchasing an additional 438 shares in the last quarter. 91.64% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

NI has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of NiSource from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 9th. Barclays reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $44.00 target price (up previously from $42.00) on shares of NiSource in a research note on Monday, August 4th. Jefferies Financial Group downgraded shares of NiSource from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and decreased their target price for the company from $48.00 to $44.00 in a research note on Friday, September 5th. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of NiSource to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, August 11th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, NiSource has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $43.88.

NiSource Stock Performance

NYSE:NI traded up $0.98 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $41.30. The company had a trading volume of 8,965,948 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,358,415. The company has a current ratio of 0.59, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32. NiSource, Inc has a 52 week low of $33.65 and a 52 week high of $43.51. The firm has a market cap of $19.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.97, a PEG ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 0.60. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $41.63 and its 200-day moving average price is $40.07.

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

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.