NiSource Inc. (NYSE:NI) Shares Purchased by QRG Capital Management Inc.

QRG Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in NiSource Inc. (NYSE:NI) by 19.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 18,262 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 2,928 shares during the period. QRG Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in NiSource were worth $671,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Brooklyn Investment Group grew its position in NiSource by 153.2% during the 4th quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 871 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 527 shares during the period. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new stake in NiSource during the third quarter worth about $33,000. Spire Wealth Management purchased a new position in NiSource during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in NiSource in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Finally, Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in NiSource in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $47,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.64% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at NiSource

In related news, CAO Gunnar Gode sold 5,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $39.92, for a total transaction of $219,560.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 24,758 shares in the company, valued at approximately $988,339.36. The trade was a 18.18 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.13% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of NiSource from $39.00 to $43.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $38.13.

NiSource Stock Down 3.6 %

NiSource stock opened at $39.75 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 0.51 and a quick ratio of 0.41. The stock has a market capitalization of $18.68 billion, a PE ratio of 24.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.50. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $37.99 and a 200-day simple moving average of $36.09. NiSource Inc. has a 12 month low of $26.04 and a 12 month high of $41.45.

NiSource (NYSE:NI) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The utilities provider reported $0.49 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.54 by ($0.05). NiSource had a return on equity of 7.87% and a net margin of 13.94%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.53 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that NiSource Inc. will post 1.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

NiSource Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 20th. Investors of record on Monday, February 3rd were given a dividend of $0.28 per share. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.82%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 3rd. This is an increase from NiSource’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.27. NiSource’s dividend payout ratio is 69.14%.

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.