Wealthfront Advisers LLC Raises Position in NiSource, Inc (NYSE:NI)

Wealthfront Advisers LLC raised its holdings in NiSource, Inc (NYSE:NI - Free Report) by 16.0% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 109,129 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 15,037 shares during the period. Wealthfront Advisers LLC's holdings in NiSource were worth $4,375,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the business. Canada Post Corp Registered Pension Plan purchased a new position in shares of NiSource in the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB increased its stake in NiSource by 64.2% during the 1st quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 765 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 299 shares during the period. Quent Capital LLC grew its stake in shares of NiSource by 44.7% in 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. Optiver Holding B.V. grew its stake in shares of NiSource by 105.0% in the 4th quarter. Optiver Holding B.V. now owns 1,281 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 656 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bellwether Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of NiSource in the fourth quarter worth approximately $55,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.64% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at NiSource

In other news, Director Michael E. Jesanis sold 6,178 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $37.81, for a total value of $233,590.18. Following the transaction, the director owned 18,541 shares of the company's stock, valued at $701,035.21. This trade represents a 24.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Melanie B. Berman sold 6,227 shares of NiSource stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $39.42, for a total value 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. This trade represents a 17.74% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 16,405 shares of company stock worth $631,939 over the last 90 days. 0.24% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on NI shares. 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. Guggenheim increased their target price on NiSource from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. Mizuho raised their price target on shares of NiSource from $42.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 26th. Barclays raised their price target on NiSource from $38.00 to $42.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, April 25th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on NiSource from $43.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, May 8th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, NiSource presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $41.50.

NiSource Stock Performance

Shares of NI stock opened at $40.25 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $18.95 billion, a PE ratio of 21.76, a P/E/G ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 0.54. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $39.39 and its 200-day simple moving average is $38.88. The company has a current ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17. NiSource, Inc has a 52 week low of $30.22 and a 52 week high of $41.45.

NiSource (NYSE:NI - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The utilities provider reported $0.98 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.90 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $2.03 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.32 billion. NiSource had a net margin of 14.67% and a return on equity of 8.41%. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.85 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that NiSource, Inc will post 1.91 EPS for the current year.

NiSource Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 20th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 31st will be issued a dividend of $0.28 per share. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.78%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 31st. NiSource's dividend payout ratio is 60.54%.

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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