NiSource, Inc $NI Shares Sold by Guggenheim Capital LLC

Key Points

• Guggenheim Capital LLC reduced its holdings in NiSource, Inc by 15.9% during the first quarter, now owning 442,666 shares valued at approximately $17.7 million.
• NiSource announced a quarterly dividend of $0.28 per share, representing a 2.6% yield and set to be paid on November 20th.
• Wall Street analysts have mixed sentiments about NiSource, with the stock receiving nine buy ratings and one hold rating, alongside an average price target of $42.56.

Guggenheim Capital LLC reduced its holdings in shares of NiSource, Inc (NYSE:NI - Free Report) by 15.9% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 442,666 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 83,641 shares during the period. Guggenheim Capital LLC owned approximately 0.09% of NiSource worth $17,746,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in NI. CreativeOne Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of NiSource in the first quarter valued at about $252,000. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL increased its holdings in shares of NiSource by 10.5% in the first quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL now owns 6,300 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $253,000 after purchasing an additional 600 shares during the period. FORA Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of NiSource in the first quarter valued at about $1,047,000. Virtus Advisers LLC increased its holdings in shares of NiSource by 303.2% in the first quarter. Virtus Advisers LLC now owns 20,922 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $839,000 after purchasing an additional 15,733 shares during the period. Finally, Synovus Financial Corp acquired a new position in shares of NiSource in the first quarter valued at about $217,000. 91.64% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Wall Street Zen lowered NiSource from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Saturday, August 9th. Barclays reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $44.00 price objective (up from $42.00) on shares of NiSource in a report on Monday, August 4th. Guggenheim increased their price objective on NiSource from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, May 8th. Zacks Research raised NiSource to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, August 11th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on NiSource from $43.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" 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. According to data from MarketBeat.com, NiSource has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $42.56.

NiSource Stock Up 0.2%

NiSource stock opened at $42.45 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $19.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 0.53. NiSource, Inc has a 52 week low of $32.53 and a 52 week high of $43.51. The business's 50-day moving average price is $41.21 and its 200 day moving average price is $39.91. 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 posted its earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.22 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.21 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $1.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.16 billion. NiSource had a return on equity of 8.25% and a net margin of 14.46%.During the same period last year, the company earned $0.21 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that NiSource, Inc will post 1.91 earnings per share for the current year.

NiSource Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Transactions at NiSource

In other NiSource news, EVP Melanie B. Berman sold 6,227 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $39.42, for a total transaction of $245,468.34. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 28,882 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,138,528.44. This represents a 17.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.24% of the company's stock.

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.

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