Rafferty Asset Management LLC Decreases Stock Holdings in NiSource, Inc $NI

Key Points

• Rafferty Asset Management LLC reduced its stake in NiSource, Inc by 19.3% in the first quarter, now holding 42,291 shares valued at approximately $1,695,000.
• Several institutional investors recently increased their positions in NiSource, with MetLife Investment Management boosting its holdings by 64.8% and Jump Financial increasing theirs by 729.2%.
• NiSource's quarterly dividend of $0.28 will be paid to shareholders on November 20th, representing a 2.7% dividend yield.

Rafferty Asset Management LLC decreased its holdings in shares of NiSource, Inc (NYSE:NI - Free Report) by 19.3% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 42,291 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 10,111 shares during the period. Rafferty Asset Management LLC's holdings in NiSource were worth $1,695,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in NI. Comerica Bank boosted its position in shares of NiSource by 17.6% during the 4th quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 155,765 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $5,726,000 after purchasing an additional 23,361 shares in the last quarter. Freestone Grove Partners LP bought a new stake in shares of NiSource during the 4th quarter valued at about $262,000. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. bought a new stake in shares of NiSource during the 4th quarter valued at about $2,955,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its holdings in NiSource by 39.8% in the fourth quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 968,971 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $35,619,000 after acquiring an additional 275,949 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Beverly Hills Private Wealth LLC bought a new position in NiSource in the fourth quarter worth approximately $332,000. Institutional investors own 91.64% of the company's stock.

NiSource Stock Down 0.6%

Shares of NI stock traded down $0.25 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $39.58. The company had a trading volume of 2,145,523 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,455,599. NiSource, Inc has a 12 month low of $33.03 and a 12 month high of $43.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32, a current ratio of 0.59 and a quick ratio of 0.48. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $41.44 and a 200-day simple moving average of $40.02. The company has a market cap of $18.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.83 and a beta of 0.60.

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

NiSource Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, November 20th. Investors of record on Friday, October 31st will be given a dividend of $0.28 per share. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 31st. NiSource's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 59.57%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have issued reports on the company. Wall Street Zen lowered NiSource from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Saturday, August 9th. Zacks Research upgraded NiSource to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, August 11th. Guggenheim increased their price target on NiSource from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, May 8th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered NiSource from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $44.00 price target on the stock. in a report on Friday. Finally, Barclays reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $44.00 price target (up previously from $42.00) on shares of NiSource in a report on Monday, August 4th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $43.11.

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.