Raymond James & Associates Raises Stock Position in NiSource Inc. (NYSE:NI)

Raymond James & Associates lifted its stake in NiSource Inc. (NYSE:NI) by 6.5% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 436,224 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 26,572 shares during the period. Raymond James & Associates owned approximately 0.10% of NiSource worth $15,115,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of NiSource by 1,866.4% in the third quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 4,975 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $172,000 after acquiring an additional 4,722 shares during the period. Friedenthal Financial acquired a new stake in NiSource during the 3rd quarter worth $50,000. Blue Trust Inc. grew its position in NiSource by 31.6% during the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 4,598 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $159,000 after purchasing an additional 1,105 shares during the last quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC increased its stake in NiSource by 65.2% in the third quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 12,683 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $439,000 after purchasing an additional 5,005 shares during the period. Finally, B.O.S.S. Retirement Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of NiSource by 2.7% in the third quarter. B.O.S.S. Retirement Advisors LLC now owns 64,345 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,230,000 after buying an additional 1,712 shares during the last quarter. 91.64% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

NI has been the topic of several recent research reports. Barclays boosted their price target on NiSource from $35.00 to $38.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Evercore ISI upped their price target on NiSource from $32.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Bank of America assumed coverage on shares of NiSource in a research report on Thursday, September 12th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $37.00 price objective on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of NiSource from $36.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on shares of NiSource from $34.00 to $36.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, September 12th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $36.29.

NiSource Price Performance

NiSource stock opened at $34.82 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $33.89 and its 200 day simple moving average is $30.79. NiSource Inc. has a 52 week low of $24.58 and a 52 week high of $35.48. The firm has a market capitalization of $15.62 billion, a PE ratio of 21.36, a P/E/G ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 0.51.

NiSource (NYSE:NI) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The utilities provider reported $0.21 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.15 by $0.06. NiSource had a net margin of 14.76% and a return on equity of 9.15%. The business had revenue of $1.08 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.16 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.11 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that NiSource Inc. will post 1.72 EPS for the current fiscal year.

NiSource Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Investors of record on Thursday, October 31st will be paid a $0.265 dividend. This represents a $1.06 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.04%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, October 31st. NiSource’s payout ratio is 65.03%.

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.