NiSource (NYSE:NI) Hits New 12-Month High - Here's Why

NiSource, Inc (NYSE:NI - Get Free Report)'s stock price reached a new 52-week high during trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $41.62 and last traded at $41.54, with a volume of 821875 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $40.90.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on NI shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of NiSource from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Mizuho boosted their price objective on shares of NiSource from $42.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 26th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on shares of NiSource from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Barclays increased their target price on shares of NiSource from $38.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of NiSource from $43.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 8th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, NiSource has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $41.50.

NiSource Price Performance

The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $39.42 and a 200 day simple moving average of $38.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a current ratio of 0.52. The firm has a market cap of $19.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 0.54.

NiSource (NYSE:NI - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The utilities provider reported $0.98 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.90 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $2.03 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.32 billion. NiSource had a return on equity of 8.41% and a net margin of 14.67%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.85 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that NiSource, Inc will post 1.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

NiSource Announces Dividend

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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 31st. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.68%. NiSource's payout ratio is currently 60.54%.

Insider Buying and Selling at NiSource

In related news, Director Michael E. Jesanis sold 6,178 shares of NiSource 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 sale, the director directly owned 18,541 shares in the company, valued at approximately $701,035.21. The trade was a 24.99% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Melanie B. Berman sold 6,227 shares of NiSource stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the executive vice president owned 28,882 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,138,528.44. The trade was a 17.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 16,405 shares of company stock valued at $631,939. Company insiders own 0.24% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of NiSource

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Canada Post Corp Registered Pension Plan purchased a new stake in shares of NiSource in the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB raised its holdings in NiSource by 64.2% during the first 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 in the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC raised its holdings in NiSource by 48.8% during the first quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 811 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 266 shares in the last quarter. Quent Capital LLC raised its holdings in NiSource by 44.7% during the first quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 1,003 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 310 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Optiver Holding B.V. raised its holdings in 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 purchasing an additional 656 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.64% of the company's stock.

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.

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