Norges Bank Acquires New Shares in NiSource Inc. (NYSE:NI)

Norges Bank bought a new position in NiSource Inc. (NYSE:NI - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 5,324,955 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $195,745,000. Norges Bank owned 1.14% of NiSource as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Brooklyn Investment Group raised its stake in shares of NiSource by 153.2% in the 4th 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. Spire Wealth Management acquired a new position in shares of NiSource during the fourth quarter worth $39,000. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of NiSource in the fourth quarter valued at $40,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in NiSource during the 3rd quarter valued at $47,000. Finally, Intact Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in NiSource during the 4th quarter worth $66,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.64% of the company's stock.

NiSource Stock Performance

NI stock traded down $1.14 during trading on Friday, reaching $38.61. 1,488,389 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,040,867. The firm has a market cap of $18.14 billion, a PE ratio of 23.89, a P/E/G ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.48. The company's fifty day moving average price is $39.10 and its 200-day moving average price is $37.03. NiSource Inc. has a 1-year low of $26.26 and a 1-year high of $41.45. The company has a quick ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 0.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13.

Remove Ads

NiSource (NYSE:NI - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The utilities provider reported $0.49 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.54 by ($0.05). NiSource had a net margin of 13.94% and a return on equity of 7.87%. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.53 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that NiSource Inc. will post 1.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

NiSource Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 20th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 30th will be issued a $0.28 dividend. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.90%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 30th. NiSource's payout ratio is 69.14%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently commented on NI shares. Mizuho boosted their price target on NiSource from $42.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 26th. UBS Group upped their target price on NiSource from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, March 21st. Finally, 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 research report on Thursday, February 13th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $39.33.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CAO Gunnar Gode sold 5,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, February 14th. The stock was 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 of the company's stock, valued at $988,339.36. This trade represents a 18.18 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.13% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.