Gunnar Gode Sells 5,500 Shares of NiSource Inc. (NYSE:NI) Stock

NiSource Inc. (NYSE:NI) CAO Gunnar Gode sold 5,500 shares of the company’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 value of $219,560.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 24,758 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $988,339.36. This represents a 18.18 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link.

NiSource Stock Performance

Shares of NI opened at $39.74 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $18.55 billion, a PE ratio of 24.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.50 and a beta of 0.54. NiSource Inc. has a 12-month low of $25.45 and a 12-month high of $39.99. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $37.15 and its 200 day moving average price is $35.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 0.46 and a quick ratio of 0.35.

NiSource (NYSE:NI) last posted 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 14.63% and a return on equity of 8.27%. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.53 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that NiSource Inc. will post 1.73 EPS for the current year.

NiSource Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 3rd will be given a $0.28 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 3rd. This is a positive change from NiSource’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.27. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.82%. NiSource’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 67.88%.

Institutional Trading of NiSource

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Canada Post Corp Registered Pension Plan bought a new stake in NiSource during the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Brooklyn Investment Group raised its stake in shares of NiSource by 153.2% during the fourth quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 871 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 527 shares in the last quarter. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new stake in shares of NiSource during the third quarter valued at about $33,000. Spire Wealth Management acquired a new stake in NiSource in the fourth quarter worth about $39,000. Finally, Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in NiSource in the 4th quarter valued at about $40,000. 91.64% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

NI has been the subject of several analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of NiSource from $36.00 to $38.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Mizuho boosted their price target on NiSource from $38.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Barclays raised their price objective on NiSource from $35.00 to $38.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on NiSource from $39.00 to $43.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of NiSource in a research report on Monday, October 28th. They set a “buy” rating and a $39.00 price target for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $38.13.

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.