NiSource Inc. (NYSE:NI) Stock Holdings Lifted by abrdn plc

abrdn plc grew its holdings in NiSource Inc. (NYSE:NI - Free Report) by 116.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 213,671 shares of the utilities provider's stock after buying an additional 115,146 shares during the quarter. abrdn plc owned approximately 0.05% of NiSource worth $5,673,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in NI. Jennison Associates LLC lifted its stake in NiSource by 0.3% in the 3rd quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 13,111,122 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $323,582,000 after acquiring an additional 39,374 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. grew its holdings in NiSource by 4.2% in the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 8,101,773 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $199,952,000 after buying an additional 326,999 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its position in shares of NiSource by 20.6% during the 3rd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 5,070,847 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $125,149,000 after acquiring an additional 865,245 shares during the period. Reaves W H & Co. Inc. lifted its position in shares of NiSource by 7.8% during the 3rd quarter. Reaves W H & Co. Inc. now owns 4,400,533 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $108,605,000 after acquiring an additional 319,143 shares during the period. Finally, Thompson Siegel & Walmsley LLC lifted its position in shares of NiSource by 10.5% during the 3rd quarter. Thompson Siegel & Walmsley LLC now owns 4,014,441 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $99,076,000 after acquiring an additional 382,569 shares during the period. 91.64% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

NiSource Trading Down 0.6 %

NYSE:NI traded down $0.16 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $27.94. 4,606,910 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,448,392. NiSource Inc. has a 12-month low of $22.86 and a 12-month high of $28.95. The firm has a market capitalization of $12.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.01, a PEG ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 0.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.76. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $26.96 and a 200-day moving average price of $26.30.

NiSource (NYSE:NI - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 21st. The utilities provider reported $0.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.55 by ($0.02). NiSource had a return on equity of 10.10% and a net margin of 12.98%. The firm had revenue of $1.42 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.59 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.50 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that NiSource Inc. will post 1.71 earnings per share for the current year.

NiSource Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 20th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 30th will be paid a $0.265 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 29th. This represents a $1.06 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.79%. NiSource's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 72.11%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

NI has been the subject of several recent research reports. StockNews.com raised NiSource from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, February 24th. Barclays increased their price target on NiSource from $28.00 to $29.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, February 22nd.

Insider Transactions at NiSource

In related news, SVP Melanie B. Berman sold 11,141 shares of NiSource stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.66, for a total transaction of $297,019.06. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 23,720 shares in the company, valued at $632,375.20. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.13% of the company's stock.

NiSource 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.