Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. Has $166.79 Million Position in NiSource, Inc (NYSE:NI)

Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in shares of NiSource, Inc (NYSE:NI - Free Report) by 0.9% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,160,409 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 38,822 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. owned approximately 0.88% of NiSource worth $166,791,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of NiSource by 5.3% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 60,844,001 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $2,439,236,000 after acquiring an additional 3,050,420 shares during the period. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of NiSource by 10.1% in the 4th quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 21,370,032 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $785,563,000 after purchasing an additional 1,965,334 shares in the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC raised its holdings in NiSource by 8.0% during the 1st quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 11,577,832 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $464,155,000 after buying an additional 857,653 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC raised its holdings in NiSource by 185.0% during the 4th quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 9,244,744 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $339,837,000 after buying an additional 6,001,486 shares during the period. Finally, Capital International Investors acquired a new position in shares of NiSource in the 4th quarter valued at about $219,977,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.64% of the company's stock.

NiSource Trading Down 0.9%

NiSource stock traded down $0.39 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $42.16. The stock had a trading volume of 700,590 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,510,343. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $40.69 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $39.61. The stock has a market capitalization of $19.85 billion, a PE ratio of 22.41, a P/E/G ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.53. NiSource, Inc has a 12 month low of $31.70 and a 12 month high of $43.51. 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 (NYSE:NI - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 quarter last year, the business earned $0.21 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast 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. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 31st will be issued 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 2.7%. NiSource's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 59.57%.

Insider Transactions at NiSource

In other NiSource 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 transaction, the executive vice president owned 28,882 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,138,528.44. This trade represents a 17.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.24% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on NiSource from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Guggenheim boosted their price target on NiSource from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on NiSource from $43.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. Barclays reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $44.00 price target (up previously from $42.00) on shares of NiSource in a research note on Monday, August 4th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on NiSource from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, April 28th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, NiSource has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $42.56.

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.