NiSource Inc. (NYSE:NI) Shares Bought by Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc.

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. raised its position in shares of NiSource Inc. (NYSE:NI - Free Report) by 3.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,033,754 shares of the utilities provider's stock after buying an additional 33,671 shares during the quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. owned about 0.22% of NiSource worth $38,001,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Brooklyn Investment Group raised its stake in NiSource by 153.2% during the fourth quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 871 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 527 shares in the last quarter. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new stake in NiSource during the third quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Spire Wealth Management acquired a new stake in NiSource during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in NiSource during the third quarter valued at approximately $47,000. Finally, Friedenthal Financial bought a new position in shares of NiSource during the third quarter valued at approximately $50,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.64% of the company's stock.

NiSource Stock Performance

NI stock traded up $0.14 on Friday, reaching $39.74. The company's stock had a trading volume of 5,293,853 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,894,095. NiSource Inc. has a 52 week low of $25.45 and a 52 week high of $39.99. The company has a market capitalization of $18.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.50 and a beta of 0.54. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $37.09 and a two-hundred day moving average of $35.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 0.46 and a quick ratio of 0.35.

NiSource (NYSE:NI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The utilities provider reported $0.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.54 by ($0.05). NiSource had a net margin of 14.63% and a return on equity of 8.27%. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.53 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that NiSource Inc. will post 1.73 EPS for the current fiscal year.

NiSource Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 3rd will be paid a dividend of $0.28 per share. This is a positive change from NiSource's previous quarterly dividend of $0.27. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.82%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 3rd. NiSource's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 67.88%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on NiSource from $39.00 to $43.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on NiSource from $36.00 to $38.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on NiSource in a report on Monday, October 28th. They set a "buy" rating and a $39.00 target price for the company. Barclays upped their target price on NiSource from $35.00 to $38.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. Finally, Mizuho upped their target price on NiSource from $38.00 to $40.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $38.13.

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.