NiSource Inc. (NYSE:NI) Shares Sold by Hartford Financial Management Inc.

Hartford Financial Management Inc. cut its stake in shares of NiSource Inc. (NYSE:NI) by 25.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,000 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 1,000 shares during the period. Hartford Financial Management Inc.’s holdings in NiSource were worth $110,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of NI. Brooklyn Investment Group raised its holdings 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 buying an additional 527 shares during the period. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new stake in shares of NiSource during the third quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in shares of NiSource in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $47,000. Friedenthal Financial acquired a new position in NiSource in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $50,000. Finally, Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL acquired a new stake in NiSource during the 2nd quarter valued at $47,000. 91.64% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

NiSource Stock Up 3.0 %

NI stock opened at $37.73 on Friday. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $36.96 and its 200 day simple moving average is $34.72. The company has a quick ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 0.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17. The company has a market cap of $17.61 billion, a PE ratio of 22.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 0.54. NiSource Inc. has a twelve month low of $24.80 and a twelve month high of $38.83.

NiSource (NYSE:NI) last released its quarterly earnings data 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. NiSource had a return on equity of 8.27% and a net margin of 14.63%. The business had revenue of $1.08 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $986.00 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.19 earnings per share. NiSource’s quarterly revenue was up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts anticipate that NiSource Inc. will post 1.73 earnings per share for the current year.

NiSource Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 3rd will be issued a dividend of $0.28 per share. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.97%. This is an increase from NiSource’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.27. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 3rd. NiSource’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 64.24%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have commented on NI shares. Barclays raised their price objective on NiSource from $35.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on NiSource from $36.00 to $38.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on NiSource from $35.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on NiSource in a report on Monday, October 28th. They set a “buy” rating and a $39.00 price target for the company. Finally, Mizuho increased their price objective on NiSource from $38.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $37.50.

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.