Sit Investment Associates Inc. Cuts Stock Position in NiSource Inc. (NYSE:NI)

Sit Investment Associates Inc. decreased its holdings in shares of NiSource Inc. (NYSE:NI) by 6.3% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 315,360 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 21,280 shares during the period. Sit Investment Associates Inc.’s holdings in NiSource were worth $11,593,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in NI. Brooklyn Investment Group increased its stake 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 in the last quarter. Spire Wealth Management purchased a new stake in shares of NiSource during the fourth quarter worth approximately $39,000. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of NiSource during the fourth quarter worth approximately $40,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new position in NiSource in the 3rd quarter valued at $47,000. Finally, Intact Investment Management Inc. purchased a new position in NiSource in the 4th quarter valued at $66,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.64% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at NiSource

In related news, CAO Gunnar Gode sold 5,500 shares of NiSource stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 owns 24,758 shares in the company, valued at approximately $988,339.36. This trade represents a 18.18 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 0.13% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on NI. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of NiSource from $39.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Mizuho increased their price objective on shares of NiSource from $42.00 to $44.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 26th. Finally, UBS Group raised their target price on shares of NiSource from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 21st. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $39.33.

NiSource Stock Performance

NYSE:NI opened at $37.23 on Friday. The company’s 50-day moving average is $39.09 and its two-hundred day moving average is $37.05. NiSource Inc. has a 1-year low of $26.26 and a 1-year high of $41.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 0.51 and a quick ratio of 0.41. The firm has a market capitalization of $17.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.98, a PEG ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.48.

NiSource (NYSE:NI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The utilities provider reported $0.49 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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 period last year, the firm earned $0.53 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that NiSource Inc. will post 1.91 EPS for the current year.

NiSource Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 20th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 30th will be given a dividend of $0.28 per share. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.01%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 30th. NiSource’s payout ratio is 69.14%.

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.