Landscape Capital Management L.L.C. Grows Position in NiSource, Inc $NI

Key Points

• Landscape Capital Management L.L.C. increased its holdings in NiSource, Inc by 38.4%, acquiring an additional 20,044 shares, bringing their total to 72,304 shares valued at approximately $2.9 million.
• NiSource recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.28 per share, set to be paid out on November 20th, representing an annualized yield of 2.7%.
• Analysts have mixed ratings for NiSource, with Barclays upping their price target to $44.00, while Wall Street Zen downgraded it to a "sell," highlighting the volatility in analyst sentiments for the stock.

Landscape Capital Management L.L.C. lifted its position in shares of NiSource, Inc (NYSE:NI - Free Report) by 38.4% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 72,304 shares of the utilities provider's stock after buying an additional 20,044 shares during the period. Landscape Capital Management L.L.C.'s holdings in NiSource were worth $2,899,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC increased its position in shares of NiSource by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 13,987 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $514,000 after acquiring an additional 256 shares in the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC increased its position in shares of NiSource by 48.8% in the 1st quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 811 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 266 shares during the last quarter. Resonant Capital Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of NiSource by 3.9% in the 1st quarter. Resonant Capital Advisors LLC now owns 7,448 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $299,000 after purchasing an additional 277 shares during the last quarter. Capital Analysts LLC grew its position in shares of NiSource by 0.6% during the 1st quarter. Capital Analysts LLC now owns 50,416 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $2,021,000 after buying an additional 283 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Laird Norton Wetherby Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of NiSource by 4.2% during the 4th quarter. Laird Norton Wetherby Wealth Management LLC now owns 7,303 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $268,000 after buying an additional 291 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.64% of the company's stock.

NiSource Price Performance

Shares of NI traded down $0.22 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $42.06. The company had a trading volume of 1,229,574 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,405,615. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $41.36 and its 200 day simple moving average is $39.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a current ratio of 0.59. NiSource, Inc has a 1-year low of $32.92 and a 1-year high of $43.51. The company has a market capitalization of $19.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.35, a P/E/G ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 0.60.

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 (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.21 by $0.01. The firm 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 quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.21 EPS. Analysts expect that NiSource, Inc will post 1.91 EPS for the current year.

NiSource Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, November 20th. Investors of record on Friday, October 31st will be given a dividend of $0.28 per share. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 31st. NiSource's payout ratio is presently 59.57%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have issued reports on NI shares. Barclays reissued an "overweight" rating and set a $44.00 target price (up from $42.00) on shares of NiSource in a research note on Monday, August 4th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of NiSource from $43.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 8th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of NiSource from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 9th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of NiSource to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, August 11th. Finally, Guggenheim increased 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. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $42.56.

About NiSource

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.