Trexquant Investment LP Takes Position in NiSource, Inc $NI

Key Points

• Trexquant Investment LP has made a new investment in NiSource, Inc, acquiring 538,420 shares valued at approximately $21.6 million, which constitutes 0.11% of the company.
• NiSource reported $0.22 earnings per share for the most recent quarter, surpassing analysts' expectations of $0.21, with a revenue matching estimates at $1.16 billion.
• The company has announced a quarterly dividend of $0.28 per share, payable on November 20th, representing an annualized dividend yield of 2.6%.

Trexquant Investment LP purchased a new position in shares of NiSource, Inc (NYSE:NI - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 538,420 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $21,585,000. Trexquant Investment LP owned approximately 0.11% of NiSource at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of NiSource by 5.3% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 60,844,001 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $2,439,236,000 after acquiring an additional 3,050,420 shares in the last quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of NiSource by 12.4% in the first quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 24,020,859 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $962,997,000 after acquiring an additional 2,650,827 shares in the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC lifted its position in shares of NiSource by 8.0% in the first quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 11,577,832 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $464,155,000 after acquiring an additional 857,653 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC lifted its position in shares of NiSource by 185.0% in the fourth quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 9,244,744 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $339,837,000 after acquiring an additional 6,001,486 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted its position in shares of NiSource by 5.2% in the fourth quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 4,821,510 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $177,239,000 after acquiring an additional 239,897 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.64% of the company's stock.

NiSource Trading Up 0.3%

NYSE:NI traded up $0.12 on Friday, reaching $42.26. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,755,787 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,828,737. NiSource, Inc has a 12-month low of $32.53 and a 12-month high of $43.51. The company has a quick ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 0.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32. The firm has a market cap of $19.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 0.53. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $41.33 and a 200 day moving average price of $39.97.

NiSource (NYSE:NI - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.22 EPS 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 the consensus estimate of $1.16 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.21 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that NiSource, Inc will post 1.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

NiSource Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, November 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 31st will be given a $0.28 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 31st. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.7%. NiSource's payout ratio is currently 59.57%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on NI shares. Barclays restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $44.00 target price (up previously from $42.00) on shares of NiSource in a research report on Monday, August 4th. Wall Street Zen lowered NiSource from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 9th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on NiSource from $43.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. Zacks Research raised NiSource to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, August 11th. Finally, Guggenheim boosted their price objective on NiSource from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, NiSource currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $42.56.

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.