NiSource, Inc $NI Shares Sold by Zimmer Partners LP

Key Points

• Zimmer Partners LP reduced its holdings in NiSource, Inc by 29.6%, owning 212,227 shares after selling 89,237 shares, valued at $8,508,000 as of the latest quarter.
• Several institutional investors, including Vanguard Group and Goldman Sachs, have increased their positions in NiSource, indicating significant interest from large investment firms.
• Despite recent fluctuations, analysts have a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" for NiSource, with a target price averaging $43.11.

Zimmer Partners LP reduced its position in shares of NiSource, Inc (NYSE:NI - Free Report) by 29.6% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 212,227 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 89,237 shares during the period. Zimmer Partners LP's holdings in NiSource were worth $8,508,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. MBB Public Markets I LLC acquired a new stake in shares of NiSource during the 1st quarter worth about $322,000. Ascent Group LLC boosted its stake in NiSource by 3.4% in the 1st quarter. Ascent Group LLC now owns 58,387 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $2,341,000 after buying an additional 1,934 shares during the last quarter. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. boosted its stake in NiSource by 10.5% in the 1st quarter. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. now owns 8,022 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $322,000 after buying an additional 762 shares during the last quarter. Sciencast Management LP acquired a new stake in shares of NiSource in the first quarter worth approximately $3,552,000. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of NiSource by 88.9% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 5,535,924 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $221,935,000 after acquiring an additional 2,605,923 shares during the last quarter. 91.64% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

NiSource Trading Down 0.3%

NI stock traded down $0.13 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $41.00. 2,379,899 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,471,938. The company has a market capitalization of $19.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.81, a PEG ratio of 2.75 and a beta of 0.60. 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 fifty-two week low of $33.32 and a fifty-two week high of $43.51. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $41.51 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $40.04.

NiSource (NYSE:NI - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly 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. The firm had revenue of $1.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.16 billion. NiSource had a net margin of 14.46% and a return on equity of 8.25%. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.21 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that NiSource, Inc will post 1.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

NiSource Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, November 20th. Stockholders 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 2.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 31st. NiSource's payout ratio is presently 59.57%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

NI has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group cut shares of NiSource from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $48.00 to $44.00 in a research report on Friday, September 5th. Zacks Research raised shares of NiSource to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, August 11th. Barclays reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $44.00 target price (up from $42.00) on shares of NiSource in a research report on Monday, August 4th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of NiSource from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 9th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $43.88.

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.