NiSource, Inc (NYSE:NI) Shares Purchased by Meeder Advisory Services Inc.

Meeder Advisory Services Inc. increased its holdings in shares of NiSource, Inc (NYSE:NI) by 13.5% in the first quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 37,070 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 4,397 shares during the quarter. Meeder Advisory Services Inc.’s holdings in NiSource were worth $1,486,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Canada Post Corp Registered Pension Plan acquired a new stake in NiSource during the 4th quarter worth $27,000. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB lifted its stake in shares of NiSource by 64.2% in the 1st quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 765 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 299 shares during the period. Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of NiSource by 48.8% in the 1st quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 811 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 266 shares during the period. Quent Capital LLC lifted its stake in shares of NiSource by 44.7% in the 1st quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 1,003 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 310 shares during the period. Finally, Optiver Holding B.V. lifted its stake in shares of NiSource by 105.0% in the 4th quarter. Optiver Holding B.V. now owns 1,281 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $47,000 after acquiring an additional 656 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.64% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently commented on NI shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of NiSource from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Barclays raised their target price on shares of NiSource from $38.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, April 25th. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on shares of NiSource from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of NiSource from $43.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. Finally, Guggenheim raised their target price on shares of NiSource from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, NiSource presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $41.50.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Melanie B. Berman sold 6,227 shares of NiSource stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $39.42, for a total transaction of $245,468.34. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 28,882 shares in the company, valued at $1,138,528.44. The trade was a 17.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Michael E. Jesanis sold 6,178 shares of NiSource stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $37.81, for a total transaction of $233,590.18. Following the sale, the director owned 18,541 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $701,035.21. This trade represents a 24.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 16,405 shares of company stock valued at $631,939. Corporate insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

NiSource Price Performance

NiSource stock opened at $42.20 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $19.86 billion, a PE ratio of 22.81, a P/E/G ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.54. NiSource, Inc has a 52 week low of $30.53 and a 52 week high of $42.26. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $39.86 and its 200 day simple moving average is $39.21. The company has a quick ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 0.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17.

NiSource (NYSE:NI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The utilities provider reported $0.98 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.90 by $0.08. NiSource had a net margin of 14.67% and a return on equity of 8.41%. The company had revenue of $2.03 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.32 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.85 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that NiSource, Inc will post 1.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

NiSource Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 20th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 31st will be paid a dividend of $0.28 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 31st. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.65%. NiSource’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 60.54%.

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.