Oak Thistle LLC Reduces Holdings in NiSource Inc. (NYSE:NI)

Oak Thistle LLC reduced its stake in NiSource Inc. (NYSE:NI) by 68.1% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 12,619 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 26,900 shares during the quarter. Oak Thistle LLC’s holdings in NiSource were worth $349,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Beacon Pointe Advisors LLC boosted its position in NiSource by 3.2% in the fourth quarter. Beacon Pointe Advisors LLC now owns 13,176 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $350,000 after buying an additional 405 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. increased its stake in shares of NiSource by 4.9% in the fourth quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. now owns 8,930 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $237,000 after acquiring an additional 414 shares during the period. Sound Income Strategies LLC increased its stake in shares of NiSource by 11.1% in the first quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 4,493 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $124,000 after acquiring an additional 449 shares during the period. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. raised its holdings in shares of NiSource by 7.9% during the fourth quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 6,185 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $164,000 after purchasing an additional 451 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. lifted its position in NiSource by 16.7% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 3,228 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $80,000 after purchasing an additional 463 shares during the period. 91.64% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

NiSource Stock Performance

NYSE NI opened at $28.70 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.20. NiSource Inc. has a twelve month low of $22.86 and a twelve month high of $29.44. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $28.50 and a 200 day moving average of $27.20. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.76, a PEG ratio of 2.81 and a beta of 0.51.

NiSource (NYSE:NI) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 8th. The utilities provider reported $0.85 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.83 by $0.02. NiSource had a return on equity of 9.56% and a net margin of 14.23%. The business had revenue of $1.71 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.07 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.77 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that NiSource Inc. will post 1.71 EPS for the current fiscal year.

NiSource Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, August 20th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 31st will be given a $0.265 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 31st. This represents a $1.06 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.69%. NiSource’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 69.28%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have weighed in on NI. Barclays increased their price target on NiSource from $30.00 to $31.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 14th. Evercore ISI lifted their price target on NiSource from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 9th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $31.00 price target on shares of NiSource in a report on Tuesday, June 18th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $29.20.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Melanie B. Berman sold 3,742 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.96, for a total value of $104,626.32. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 19,978 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $558,584.88. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 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.