NiSource, Inc (NYSE:NI) Shares Sold by Invesco Ltd.

Key Points

• Invesco Ltd. reduced its stake in NiSource by 3.5%, now holding approximately 1.68% of the company, valued at $317 million after selling nearly 290,000 shares.
• Several institutional investors, including LPL Financial LLC and Asset Management One Co. Ltd., increased their holdings, indicating strong interest in NiSource among large stakeholders.
• Wall Street analysts raised their price targets for NiSource, with a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a target price of $42.56, reflecting positive sentiment about the company's growth potential.

Invesco Ltd. lessened its position in NiSource, Inc (NYSE:NI - Free Report) by 3.5% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 7,910,009 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 289,864 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. owned approximately 1.68% of NiSource worth $317,112,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. LPL Financial LLC increased its holdings in shares of NiSource by 29.9% in the 1st quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 234,234 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $9,390,000 after acquiring an additional 53,972 shares during the period. Lincoln Capital Corp bought a new stake in shares of NiSource during the 1st quarter worth about $2,556,000. Capital International Inc. CA acquired a new stake in shares of NiSource in the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,612,000. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of NiSource by 14.0% in the first quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 358,469 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $14,371,000 after acquiring an additional 43,947 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Alyeska Investment Group L.P. acquired a new position in shares of NiSource during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $2,955,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.64% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other NiSource news, Director Michael E. Jesanis sold 6,178 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $37.81, for a total value of $233,590.18. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 18,541 shares in the company, valued at $701,035.21. This trade represents a 24.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, 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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 28,882 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,138,528.44. The trade was a 17.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.24% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

NiSource Stock Performance

NYSE:NI opened at $42.17 on Tuesday. NiSource, Inc has a twelve month low of $31.28 and a twelve 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. The company has a 50-day moving average of $40.48 and a 200-day moving average of $39.52. The firm has a market cap of $19.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 0.53.

NiSource (NYSE:NI - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.22 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.21 by $0.01. NiSource had a net margin of 14.46% and a return on equity of 8.25%. The company had revenue of $1.16 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.16 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.21 EPS. Analysts forecast that NiSource, Inc will post 1.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.