NiSource Inc. (NYSE:NI) Shares Bought by Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc.

Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. grew its holdings in NiSource Inc. (NYSE:NI) by 35.5% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 223,703 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 58,601 shares during the quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc.’s holdings in NiSource were worth $6,188,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of NI. Lindbrook Capital LLC lifted its position in NiSource by 23.8% during the 1st quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 1,922 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $53,000 after acquiring an additional 369 shares during the period. Beacon Pointe Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of NiSource by 3.2% during the fourth quarter. Beacon Pointe Advisors LLC now owns 13,176 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $350,000 after purchasing an additional 405 shares during the period. Raymond James Trust N.A. boosted its position in NiSource by 4.9% in the fourth quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. now owns 8,930 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $237,000 after buying an additional 414 shares during the last quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC increased its holdings in NiSource by 11.1% in the 1st quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 4,493 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $124,000 after buying an additional 449 shares during the period. Finally, Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. raised its position in NiSource by 7.9% during the 4th quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 6,185 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $164,000 after buying an additional 451 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.64% of the company’s stock.

NiSource Trading Up 1.2 %

Shares of NYSE NI traded up $0.37 during trading on Friday, hitting $30.07. 3,569,090 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,303,994. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $28.63 and a 200-day moving average price of $27.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.20, a quick ratio of 0.56 and a current ratio of 0.66. The firm has a market capitalization of $13.48 billion, a PE ratio of 19.63, a P/E/G ratio of 2.83 and a beta of 0.50. NiSource Inc. has a 12-month low of $22.86 and a 12-month high of $30.24.

NiSource (NYSE:NI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 8th. The utilities provider reported $0.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.83 by $0.02. NiSource had a net margin of 14.23% and a return on equity of 9.56%. The business had revenue of $1.71 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.07 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.77 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that NiSource Inc. will post 1.72 EPS for the current year.

NiSource Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, August 20th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 31st will be paid a $0.265 dividend. This represents a $1.06 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.53%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, July 31st. NiSource’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 69.28%.

Insider Transactions at NiSource

In other news, SVP Melanie B. Berman sold 3,742 shares of NiSource stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.96, for a total value of $104,626.32. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 19,978 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $558,584.88. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Company insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently commented on the company. Mizuho started coverage on NiSource in a report on Thursday. They set an “outperform” rating and a $33.00 target price on the stock. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $31.00 target price on shares of NiSource in a report on Tuesday, June 18th. Barclays increased their price target on shares of NiSource from $30.00 to $31.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 14th. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on shares of NiSource from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, May 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $29.83.

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.