Millennium Management LLC Sells 7,798,319 Shares of NiSource, Inc $NI

Millennium Management LLC decreased its holdings in NiSource, Inc (NYSE:NI - Free Report) by 84.4% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,446,425 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 7,798,319 shares during the quarter. Millennium Management LLC owned 0.31% of NiSource worth $57,987,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

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

NiSource Trading Down 0.1%

NiSource stock traded down $0.06 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $41.08. 1,274,673 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,464,941. 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 firm's 50 day moving average price is $41.51 and its 200 day moving average price is $40.04. The firm has a market capitalization of $19.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.85, a P/E/G ratio of 2.75 and a beta of 0.60. NiSource, Inc has a 52-week low of $33.32 and a 52-week 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 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.21 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $1.16 billion for 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 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that NiSource, Inc will post 1.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

NiSource Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, November 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 31st will be paid a $0.28 dividend. 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 is 59.57%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on NI shares. Jefferies Financial Group lowered shares of NiSource from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $48.00 to $44.00 in a research note on Friday, September 5th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of NiSource from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Saturday, August 9th. Barclays restated an "overweight" rating and set a $44.00 price objective (up previously from $42.00) on shares of NiSource in a report on Monday, August 4th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of NiSource to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, August 11th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $43.88.

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.