T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. Increases Position in NiSource, Inc $NI

T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. grew its position in shares of NiSource, Inc (NYSE:NI) by 19.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 51,504,257 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 8,240,227 shares during the period. NiSource makes up about 1.4% of T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 13th largest holding. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. owned about 10.76% of NiSource worth $2,150,818,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in NiSource by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 62,408,533 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,606,180,000 after acquiring an additional 1,032,630 shares during the period. State Street Corp increased its stake in NiSource by 4.5% during the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 26,735,119 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,116,459,000 after purchasing an additional 1,154,351 shares during the period. Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC lifted its position in shares of NiSource by 55,625.2% during the second quarter. Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC now owns 16,866,898 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $680,411,000 after purchasing an additional 16,836,630 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of NiSource by 2.0% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 12,459,421 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $518,301,000 after purchasing an additional 245,110 shares during the period. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its holdings in shares of NiSource by 2.2% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 8,495,320 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $367,852,000 after purchasing an additional 183,203 shares in the last quarter. 91.64% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at NiSource

In other news, EVP Melanie B. Berman sold 15,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $47.68, for a total transaction of $715,200.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 35,990 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,716,003.20. This trade represents a 29.42% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Melody Birmingham sold 2,500 shares of NiSource stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $47.43, for a total transaction of $118,575.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 116,036 shares in the company, valued at $5,503,587.48. The trade was a 2.11% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 27,500 shares of company stock valued at $1,305,675 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.37% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on NI shares. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of NiSource from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, May 16th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of NiSource from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on NiSource from $51.00 to $52.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Barclays lifted their price target on NiSource from $45.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, April 17th. Finally, Evercore set a $52.00 price objective on NiSource in a research report on Monday, May 11th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, NiSource currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $50.33.

NiSource Stock Up 0.9%

NI opened at $47.20 on Friday. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $47.22 and its 200-day simple moving average is $45.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30, a quick ratio of 0.56 and a current ratio of 0.65. NiSource, Inc has a one year low of $38.45 and a one year high of $48.98. The stock has a market capitalization of $22.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.54.

NiSource (NYSE:NI) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The utilities provider reported $1.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.06. The firm had revenue of $2.36 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.52 billion. NiSource had a return on equity of 8.31% and a net margin of 14.15%.During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.85 EPS. NiSource has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.020-2.070 EPS. Analysts anticipate that NiSource, Inc will post 2.05 EPS for the current year.

NiSource Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 31st will be issued a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 31st. NiSource’s dividend payout ratio is presently 59.70%.

NiSource Company Profile

NiSource, Inc (NYSE: NI) is a publicly traded energy holding company headquartered in Merrillville, Indiana, that primarily owns and operates regulated local gas and electric utilities in the United States. Through its operating subsidiaries, the company delivers natural gas and electricity to residential, commercial and industrial customers and provides the associated distribution and transmission services that keep local energy systems functioning.

The company’s core activities include natural gas distribution, electric transmission and distribution, system operations, maintenance and emergency response.