NiSource Inc. (NYSE:NI) Receives $32.43 Average Price Target from Analysts

NiSource Inc. (NYSE:NI) has earned a consensus recommendation of “Buy” from the six analysts that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Six analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating. The average twelve-month price objective among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $32.43.

Several research firms recently weighed in on NI. Evercore ISI lifted their price target on shares of NiSource from $32.00 to $34.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of NiSource from $34.00 to $35.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 13th. Mizuho assumed coverage on shares of NiSource in a research note on Thursday, July 11th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $33.00 target price on the stock. Bank of America assumed coverage on NiSource in a report on Thursday, September 12th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $37.00 target price for the company. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on shares of NiSource from $34.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, September 12th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On NiSource

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in NI. Sanctuary Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of NiSource during the second quarter valued at approximately $2,964,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL bought a new stake in shares of NiSource in the 2nd quarter worth about $47,000. Aurora Investment Counsel boosted its holdings in shares of NiSource by 0.7% in the 2nd quarter. Aurora Investment Counsel now owns 62,589 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,803,000 after purchasing an additional 450 shares during the period. Cetera Investment Advisers boosted its stake in shares of NiSource by 1.0% during the 2nd quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 69,397 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,999,000 after purchasing an additional 671 shares during the period. Finally, 3Chopt Investment Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of NiSource during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $226,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.64% of the company’s stock.

NiSource Price Performance

Shares of NiSource stock opened at $34.65 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30, a current ratio of 0.78 and a quick ratio of 0.63. NiSource has a one year low of $22.86 and a one year high of $34.69. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $32.64 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $29.82. The stock has a market capitalization of $15.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 0.51.

NiSource (NYSE:NI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The utilities provider reported $0.21 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.15 by $0.06. NiSource had a net margin of 14.76% and a return on equity of 9.15%. The business had revenue of $1.08 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.16 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.11 EPS. Analysts forecast that NiSource will post 1.72 EPS for the current year.

NiSource Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 31st will be paid a $0.265 dividend. This represents a $1.06 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.06%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, October 31st. NiSource’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 69.28%.

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.