ProShare Advisors LLC Increases Stock Holdings in NiSource Inc. (NYSE:NI)

ProShare Advisors LLC raised its stake in NiSource Inc. (NYSE:NI) by 43.9% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 145,333 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 44,308 shares during the quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC’s holdings in NiSource were worth $4,064,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Achmea Investment Management B.V. purchased a new position in shares of NiSource in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Allworth Financial LP boosted its stake in shares of NiSource by 161.0% in the first quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 1,099 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 678 shares in the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of NiSource by 897.5% in the first quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 1,197 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 1,077 shares in the last quarter. Industrial Alliance Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of NiSource in the first quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Finally, Parkside Financial Bank & Trust boosted its stake in shares of NiSource by 182.9% in the first quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 1,372 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 887 shares in the last quarter. 94.91% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at NiSource

In other NiSource news, EVP William Jr. Jefferson sold 4,875 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.80, for a total transaction of $130,650.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 30,905 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $828,254. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, CEO Lloyd M. Yates bought 40,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 23rd. The stock was bought at an average price of $26.44 per share, with a total value of $1,057,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 131,242 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,470,038.48. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP William Jr. Jefferson sold 4,875 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.80, for a total value of $130,650.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 30,905 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $828,254. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.24% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

NiSource Stock Performance

NiSource stock opened at $27.55 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.13, a PEG ratio of 2.51 and a beta of 0.48. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $27.11 and a 200 day moving average price of $27.46. NiSource Inc. has a 52 week low of $23.78 and a 52 week high of $29.44. The company has a current ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 0.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.71.

NiSource (NYSE:NI) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 2nd. The utilities provider reported $0.11 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.13 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $1.09 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.16 billion. NiSource had a net margin of 12.00% and a return on equity of 10.90%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.12 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that NiSource Inc. will post 1.58 earnings per share for the current year.

NiSource Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 20th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, October 31st will be given a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.63%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, October 30th. NiSource’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 69.44%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently weighed in on NI shares. Guggenheim decreased their price target on NiSource from $31.00 to $30.00 in a research note on Friday, July 7th. UBS Group raised NiSource from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $31.00 price objective for the company in a report on Tuesday, June 6th. Bank of America reduced their price objective on NiSource from $32.00 to $31.00 in a report on Thursday, June 22nd. StockNews.com cut NiSource from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 12th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reduced their price objective on NiSource from $31.00 to $30.00 in a report on Wednesday, June 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $30.00.

NiSource Profile

NiSource Inc, an energy holding company, operates as a regulated natural gas and electric utility company in the United States. It operates through two segments, Gas Distribution Operations and Electric Operations. The company distributes natural gas to approximately 859,000 customers in northern Indiana, as well as approximately 2.4 million residential, commercial, and industrial customers in Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Kentucky, and Maryland.