Nuveen Asset Management LLC Decreases Stock Holdings in NiSource Inc. (NYSE:NI)

Nuveen Asset Management LLC cut its holdings in shares of NiSource Inc. (NYSE:NI - Free Report) by 5.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,008,646 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 114,964 shares during the quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC owned 0.43% of NiSource worth $73,838,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Canada Post Corp Registered Pension Plan purchased a new stake in shares of NiSource in the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Brooklyn Investment Group increased its position in shares of NiSource by 153.2% during the fourth quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 871 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 527 shares during the period. Spire Wealth Management acquired a new position in NiSource in the fourth quarter worth $39,000. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in NiSource during the 4th quarter worth $40,000. Finally, Optiver Holding B.V. boosted its position in shares of NiSource by 105.0% during the fourth quarter. Optiver Holding B.V. now owns 1,281 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $47,000 after buying an additional 656 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.64% of the company's stock.

NiSource Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:NI traded down $0.67 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $38.84. The company's stock had a trading volume of 3,924,586 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,152,276. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 0.51 and a quick ratio of 0.41. NiSource Inc. has a 12 month low of $27.60 and a 12 month high of $41.45. The company has a 50-day moving average of $39.10 and a 200-day moving average of $38.08. The firm has a market cap of $18.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.98, a P/E/G ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.53.

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

NiSource Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 20th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 31st will be given a $0.28 dividend. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.88%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 31st. NiSource's payout ratio is currently 60.54%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have commented on NI. Mizuho lifted their target price on NiSource from $42.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 26th. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of NiSource from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, March 21st. Guggenheim raised their price target on NiSource from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 8th. BMO Capital Markets raised 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. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted 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. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $41.50.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Michael E. Jesanis sold 4,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $38.22, for a total transaction of $152,880.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 24,719 shares in the company, valued at approximately $944,760.18. The trade was a 13.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 0.24% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.