Mizuho Securities USA LLC Purchases 15,157 Shares of NiSource Inc. (NYSE:NI)

Mizuho Securities USA LLC increased its position in NiSource Inc. (NYSE:NI) by 52.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 44,240 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 15,157 shares during the period. Mizuho Securities USA LLC’s holdings in NiSource were worth $1,626,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of NI. Commerce Bank raised its position in shares of NiSource by 10.0% during the third quarter. Commerce Bank now owns 11,012 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $382,000 after buying an additional 1,000 shares during the last quarter. Citigroup Inc. increased its holdings in NiSource by 17.8% in the 3rd quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 421,036 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $14,589,000 after acquiring an additional 63,563 shares during the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC lifted its stake in NiSource by 20.7% in the 3rd quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 119,180 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $4,130,000 after purchasing an additional 20,444 shares in the last quarter. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of NiSource during the 3rd quarter valued at about $325,000. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group Inc. grew its position in shares of NiSource by 4.9% during the third quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 88,441 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $3,064,000 after purchasing an additional 4,092 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.64% of the company’s stock.

NiSource Stock Down 0.5 %

NYSE NI opened at $39.63 on Wednesday. NiSource Inc. has a 52 week low of $26.26 and a 52 week high of $41.45. The firm has a market capitalization of $18.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.46, a PEG ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.50. The company has a quick ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 0.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13. The company has a fifty day moving average of $38.80 and a two-hundred day moving average of $36.76.

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 net margin of 13.94% and a return on equity of 7.87%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.53 EPS. On average, analysts predict that NiSource Inc. will post 1.91 earnings per share for the current year.

NiSource Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 20th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 30th will be paid a dividend of $0.28 per share. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.83%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 30th. NiSource’s dividend payout ratio is currently 69.14%.

Insider Activity at NiSource

In other NiSource news, CAO Gunnar Gode sold 5,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 14th. The shares were 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 directly owns 24,758 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $988,339.36. The trade was a 18.18 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.13% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently commented on NI shares. UBS Group increased their price target on NiSource from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 21st. Wells Fargo & Company raised 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. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat, NiSource currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $38.89.

NiSource Company 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.