DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main Boosts Stake in NiSource Inc. (NYSE:NI)

DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main boosted its holdings in NiSource Inc. (NYSE:NI - Free Report) by 72.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 302,324 shares of the utilities provider's stock after buying an additional 126,911 shares during the quarter. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main owned approximately 0.06% of NiSource worth $11,113,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of NI. Canada Post Corp Registered Pension Plan purchased a new position in shares of NiSource during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Brooklyn Investment Group grew its holdings in shares of NiSource by 153.2% during the fourth quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 871 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 527 shares during the last quarter. Spire Wealth Management purchased a new position in shares of NiSource during the fourth quarter worth about $39,000. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of NiSource during the fourth quarter worth about $40,000. Finally, Optiver Holding B.V. grew its holdings in shares of NiSource by 105.0% during the fourth quarter. Optiver Holding B.V. now owns 1,281 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $47,000 after buying an additional 656 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.64% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at NiSource

In related news, CAO Gunnar Gode sold 5,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $39.92, for a total value of $219,560.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 24,758 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $988,339.36. This represents a 18.18% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.24% of the company's stock.

NiSource Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:NI traded down $1.33 during trading on Monday, hitting $38.25. 4,768,323 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,167,292. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $39.08 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $37.94. The company has a market cap of $18.01 billion, a PE ratio of 23.61, a P/E/G ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.53. The company has a current ratio of 0.51, a quick ratio of 0.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13. NiSource Inc. has a 12-month low of $27.60 and a 12-month high of $41.45.

NiSource (NYSE:NI - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The utilities provider reported $0.98 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 return on equity of 7.87% and a net margin of 13.94%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.85 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that NiSource Inc. will post 1.91 EPS for the current year.

NiSource Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 20th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 31st will be paid a dividend of $0.28 per share. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.93%. NiSource's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 60.54%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on NI shares. UBS Group raised their price target on NiSource from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, March 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on NiSource from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on NiSource from $43.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday. Barclays raised their price target on NiSource from $38.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, April 25th. Finally, Guggenheim raised their price target on NiSource from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $41.50.

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.