UBS Group Issues Positive Forecast for NiSource (NYSE:NI) Stock Price

NiSource (NYSE:NI) had its price target lifted by research analysts at UBS Group from $40.00 to $45.00 in a report released on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a “buy” rating on the utilities provider’s stock. UBS Group’s price target suggests a potential upside of 14.84% from the company’s previous close.

Separately, 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 report on Thursday, February 13th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, NiSource presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $38.89.

NiSource Stock Down 1.0 %

NYSE:NI opened at $39.18 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $38.67 and its 200 day simple moving average is $36.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 0.51 and a quick ratio of 0.41. NiSource has a one year low of $26.26 and a one year high of $41.45. The company has a market cap of $18.41 billion, a PE ratio of 24.19, a P/E/G ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.50.

NiSource (NYSE:NI) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The utilities provider reported $0.49 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 earned $0.53 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that NiSource will post 1.91 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other NiSource 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 sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 24,758 shares in the company, valued at approximately $988,339.36. The trade was a 18.18 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.13% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of NiSource

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of NI. Canada Post Corp Registered Pension Plan purchased a new position in NiSource during the 4th quarter worth $27,000. Brooklyn Investment Group boosted its holdings in NiSource by 153.2% during the 4th quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 871 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 527 shares during the last quarter. Spire Wealth Management purchased a new position in NiSource during the 4th quarter worth $39,000. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in NiSource during the 4th quarter worth $40,000. Finally, Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new position in NiSource during the 3rd quarter worth $47,000. 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.