NiSource Inc. (NYSE:NI) Receives $37.50 Average Target Price from Analysts

Shares of NiSource Inc. (NYSE:NI - Get Free Report) have received an average rating of "Buy" from the eight analysts that are covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a buy recommendation. The average 1-year price objective among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $37.50.

A number of research firms recently weighed in on NI. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on shares of NiSource from $34.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, September 12th. Evercore ISI increased their price target on shares of NiSource from $32.00 to $34.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Bank of America assumed coverage on shares of NiSource in a research report on Thursday, September 12th. They set a "buy" rating and a $37.00 price target for the company. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of NiSource from $35.00 to $38.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Mizuho increased their price target on shares of NiSource from $38.00 to $40.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st.

NiSource Price Performance

NI traded up $0.30 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $36.25. The company's stock had a trading volume of 3,399,483 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,042,557. The company has a current ratio of 0.46, a quick ratio of 0.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17. NiSource has a 12 month low of $24.80 and a 12 month high of $36.40. The stock has a market cap of $16.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.97, a P/E/G ratio of 2.99 and a beta of 0.51. The business's 50-day moving average price is $34.55 and its 200-day moving average price is $31.50.

NiSource (NYSE:NI - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The utilities provider reported $0.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.15 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $1.08 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $986.00 million. NiSource had a net margin of 14.63% and a return on equity of 8.27%. The business's revenue was up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.19 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that NiSource will post 1.73 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Bridgewater Associates LP acquired a new stake in shares of NiSource in the 3rd quarter worth $7,177,000. Townsquare Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of NiSource during the 3rd quarter worth about $245,000. FMR LLC increased its position in shares of NiSource by 0.9% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 11,396,489 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $394,888,000 after purchasing an additional 99,882 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can increased its position in shares of NiSource by 53.3% during the 3rd quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 5,124,909 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $176,194,000 after purchasing an additional 1,782,078 shares during the last quarter. Finally, DRW Securities LLC acquired a new stake in shares of NiSource during the 3rd quarter worth about $8,167,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.64% of the company's stock.

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.