Sciencast Management LP Invests $3.55 Million in NiSource, Inc $NI

Key Points

• Sciencast Management LP has invested approximately $3.55 million in NiSource, Inc, acquiring 88,594 shares in the company during the first quarter.
• NiSource recently reported a quarterly earnings per share (EPS) of $0.22, which exceeded analysts' expectations of $0.21.
• The company has declared a quarterly dividend of $0.28, which will be paid on November 20th, representing an annualized yield of 2.8%.

Sciencast Management LP purchased a new position in shares of NiSource, Inc (NYSE:NI - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm purchased 88,594 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $3,552,000.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB increased its stake in shares of NiSource by 64.2% during the 1st quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 765 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 299 shares during the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC increased its stake in shares of NiSource by 48.8% during the 1st quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 811 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 266 shares during the last quarter. Quent Capital LLC increased its stake in shares of NiSource by 44.7% during the 1st quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 1,003 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 310 shares during the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group increased its stake in shares of NiSource by 57.3% during the 1st quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 1,370 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $55,000 after purchasing an additional 499 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hemington Wealth Management boosted its holdings in NiSource by 39.4% in the 1st quarter. Hemington Wealth Management now owns 1,551 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $62,000 after buying an additional 438 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.64% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently commented on NI. Barclays reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $44.00 price objective (up from $42.00) on shares of NiSource in a report on Monday, August 4th. Zacks Research raised shares of NiSource to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, August 11th. Jefferies Financial Group downgraded shares of NiSource from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and cut their price objective for the stock from $48.00 to $44.00 in a report on Friday. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of NiSource from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Saturday, August 9th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $43.11.

NiSource Stock Up 1.3%

Shares of NYSE:NI opened at $40.35 on Monday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $41.44 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $40.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32, a current ratio of 0.59 and a quick ratio of 0.48. NiSource, Inc has a one year low of $33.03 and a one year high of $43.51. The company has a market cap of $19.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.46, a PEG ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 0.60.

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 (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates 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 the consensus estimate of $1.16 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.21 EPS. Analysts anticipate that NiSource, Inc will post 1.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

NiSource Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, November 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 31st will be paid a $0.28 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 31st. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.8%. NiSource's payout ratio is currently 59.57%.

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.

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