NiSource, Inc $NI Shares Bought by Hsbc Holdings PLC

Key Points

• Hsbc Holdings PLC has increased its stake in NiSource, Inc. by 14.1% in the first quarter, holding a position worth approximately $38.11 million after acquiring an additional 117,583 shares.
• NiSource reported $1.16 billion in revenue for the last quarter and delivered earnings of $0.22 per share, beating analysts' expectations by $0.01.
• The company has announced a quarterly dividend of $0.28 per share, with a yield of 2.6%, scheduled to be paid on November 20th to stockholders of record by October 31st.

Hsbc Holdings PLC lifted its stake in shares of NiSource, Inc (NYSE:NI - Free Report) by 14.1% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 953,111 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 117,583 shares during the quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC owned 0.20% of NiSource worth $38,113,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Aviso Financial Inc. raised its holdings in NiSource by 2.0% in the 1st quarter. Aviso Financial Inc. now owns 32,080 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,286,000 after buying an additional 630 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp lifted its holdings in NiSource by 4.7% during the first quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 4,638,973 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $185,976,000 after acquiring an additional 206,448 shares during the period. Brooklyn Investment Group raised its holdings in shares of NiSource by 57.3% in the 1st quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 1,370 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $55,000 after purchasing an additional 499 shares during the period. Versor Investments LP purchased a new stake in shares of NiSource during the first quarter worth $229,000. Finally, Freestone Capital Holdings LLC purchased a new position in shares of NiSource during the 1st quarter valued at $212,000. 91.64% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

NI has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Barclays reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $44.00 price target (up from $42.00) on shares of NiSource in a research report on Monday, August 4th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of NiSource from $43.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, May 8th. Wall Street Zen cut NiSource from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 9th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective 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. Finally, Guggenheim raised 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. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $42.56.

NiSource Price Performance

NI stock traded down $0.26 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $42.41. The company's stock had a trading volume of 4,133,365 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,467,979. The firm has a market capitalization of $19.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 0.53. The company has a 50 day moving average of $41.09 and a two-hundred day moving average of $39.88. NiSource, Inc has a 12 month low of $32.53 and a 12 month high of $43.51. The company has a quick ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 0.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32.

NiSource (NYSE:NI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.21 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $1.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.16 billion. NiSource had a return on equity of 8.25% and a net margin of 14.46%.During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.21 EPS. On average, analysts expect that NiSource, Inc will post 1.91 EPS for the current year.

NiSource Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, November 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 31st will be issued a dividend of $0.28 per share. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 31st. NiSource's dividend payout ratio is presently 59.57%.

Insider Transactions at NiSource

In related news, EVP Melanie B. Berman sold 6,227 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $39.42, for a total transaction of $245,468.34. Following the sale, 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 document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 0.24% of the stock is currently owned by 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.