NiSource Inc. (NYSE:NI) Receives $38.13 Average Price Target from Brokerages

NiSource Inc. (NYSE:NI) has received an average rating of “Buy” from the nine brokerages that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating. The average 12 month price objective among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $38.89.

NI has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of NiSource from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of NiSource from $39.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th.

NiSource Stock Down 1.0 %

Shares of NYSE:NI opened at $39.18 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 0.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13. NiSource has a 52-week low of $26.26 and a 52-week high of $41.45. The company has a 50 day moving average of $38.67 and a two-hundred day moving average of $36.65. The company has a market capitalization of $18.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.50.

NiSource (NYSE:NI) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The utilities provider reported $0.49 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.54 by ($0.05). NiSource had a return on equity of 7.87% and a net margin of 13.94%. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.53 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that NiSource will post 1.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

NiSource Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 20th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 30th will be issued a $0.28 dividend. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.86%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 30th. NiSource’s dividend payout ratio is presently 69.14%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CAO Gunnar Gode sold 5,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $39.92, for a total transaction of $219,560.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 24,758 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $988,339.36. The trade was a 18.18 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On NiSource

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of NI. Canada Post Corp Registered Pension Plan acquired a new position in shares of NiSource during the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Brooklyn Investment Group lifted its holdings in NiSource by 153.2% in 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 period. Spire Wealth Management acquired a new stake in NiSource in the fourth quarter worth about $39,000. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in NiSource in the fourth quarter worth about $40,000. Finally, Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in NiSource in the third quarter worth about $47,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.64% of the company’s stock.

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.