Thomasville National Bank Purchases 14,627 Shares of NiSource Inc. (NYSE:NI)

Thomasville National Bank lifted its position in shares of NiSource Inc. (NYSE:NI - Free Report) by 2.6% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 581,823 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 14,627 shares during the period. NiSource accounts for about 1.7% of Thomasville National Bank's holdings, making the stock its 20th biggest position. Thomasville National Bank owned approximately 0.12% of NiSource worth $23,325,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in NI. Canada Post Corp Registered Pension Plan purchased a new position in shares of NiSource in the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB grew its stake in NiSource by 64.2% during the first quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 765 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 299 shares in the last quarter. Quent Capital LLC grew its stake in NiSource by 44.7% during the first quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 1,003 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 310 shares in the last quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in NiSource during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Finally, Optiver Holding B.V. grew its stake in NiSource by 105.0% during the fourth quarter. Optiver Holding B.V. now owns 1,281 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $47,000 after acquiring an additional 656 shares in the last quarter. 91.64% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at NiSource

In related news, Director Michael E. Jesanis sold 6,178 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $37.81, for a total transaction of $233,590.18. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 18,541 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $701,035.21. This represents a 24.99% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Melanie B. Berman sold 6,227 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $39.42, for a total transaction of $245,468.34. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 28,882 shares in the company, valued at $1,138,528.44. This trade represents a 17.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 16,405 shares of company stock valued at $631,939 in the last three months. 0.24% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

NiSource Trading Down 0.5%

Shares of NI traded down $0.18 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $39.34. The company's stock had a trading volume of 3,758,365 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,134,807. The stock has a market cap of $18.52 billion, a PE ratio of 24.28, a P/E/G ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.54. The company has a current ratio of 0.51, a quick ratio of 0.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13. NiSource Inc. has a 52 week low of $27.83 and a 52 week high of $41.45. The company's fifty day moving average price is $39.11 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $38.42.

NiSource (NYSE:NI - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The utilities provider reported $0.98 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.90 by $0.08. NiSource had a net margin of 13.94% and a return on equity of 7.87%. The company had revenue of $2.03 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.32 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.85 EPS. On average, analysts predict that NiSource Inc. will post 1.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

NiSource Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 20th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 31st will be issued a $0.28 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 31st. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.85%. NiSource's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 60.54%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have weighed in on the company. UBS Group raised their price target on NiSource from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, March 21st. Barclays upped their target price on shares of NiSource from $38.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on shares of NiSource from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, April 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of NiSource from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, Guggenheim upped their target price on shares of NiSource from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 8th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $41.50.

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.