NiSource Inc. (NYSE:NI) Shares Acquired by ING Groep NV

ING Groep NV increased its stake in shares of NiSource Inc. (NYSE:NI) by 113.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 46,018 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 24,434 shares during the quarter. ING Groep NV’s holdings in NiSource were worth $1,692,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Brooklyn Investment Group grew its position in NiSource by 153.2% during the fourth quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 871 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 527 shares during the period. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new stake in NiSource in the third quarter valued at $33,000. Spire Wealth Management bought a new stake in NiSource during the 4th quarter valued at $39,000. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of NiSource in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Finally, Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new position in NiSource during the third quarter worth about $47,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.64% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on NI shares. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on NiSource in a report on Monday, October 28th. They set a “buy” rating and a $39.00 price target on the stock. Mizuho upped their target price on NiSource from $38.00 to $40.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on NiSource from $39.00 to $43.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $38.13.

Insider Transactions at NiSource

In related news, CAO Gunnar Gode sold 5,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $39.92, for a total value of $219,560.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 24,758 shares in the company, valued at $988,339.36. This trade represents a 18.18 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Corporate insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

NiSource Trading Up 0.3 %

NI opened at $40.09 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 0.51, a quick ratio of 0.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13. The firm has a market cap of $18.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.74, a P/E/G ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.54. NiSource Inc. has a 12 month low of $25.59 and a 12 month high of $40.22. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $37.42 and a 200 day moving average of $35.67.

NiSource (NYSE:NI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The utilities provider reported $0.49 earnings per share 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 period last year, the company earned $0.53 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that NiSource Inc. will post 1.91 EPS for the current year.

NiSource Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 3rd were paid a $0.28 dividend. This is a boost from NiSource’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.27. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.79%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 3rd. NiSource’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 69.14%.

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.