NiSource Inc. (NYSE:NI) Shares Acquired by Buckingham Capital Management Inc.

Buckingham Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of NiSource Inc. (NYSE:NI) by 59.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 136,493 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 50,990 shares during the period. Buckingham Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in NiSource were worth $5,017,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in NI. Blue Trust Inc. grew its holdings in NiSource by 31.6% during the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 4,598 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $159,000 after purchasing an additional 1,105 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James & Associates boosted its stake in NiSource by 6.5% during the 3rd quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 436,224 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $15,115,000 after acquiring an additional 26,572 shares during the last quarter. Resonant Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in NiSource during the 3rd quarter valued at $234,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in NiSource by 249.6% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 30,908 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,071,000 after acquiring an additional 22,066 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in NiSource by 27.4% during the 3rd quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. now owns 61,251 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,122,000 after acquiring an additional 13,171 shares during the last quarter. 91.64% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have commented on NI shares. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of 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 increased their price objective on shares of NiSource from $39.00 to $43.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on shares of NiSource in a research note on Monday, October 28th. They set a “buy” rating and a $39.00 price objective on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective 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. Finally, Mizuho raised their price target on shares of NiSource from $38.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $38.13.

NiSource Trading Up 0.4 %

Shares of NYSE:NI opened at $39.74 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $18.55 billion, a PE ratio of 24.09, a P/E/G ratio of 2.50 and a beta of 0.54. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $37.15 and its 200 day moving average price is $35.42. NiSource Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $25.45 and a fifty-two week high of $39.99. The company has a quick ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 0.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17.

NiSource (NYSE:NI) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The utilities provider reported $0.49 earnings per share 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 in the prior year, the company earned $0.53 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that NiSource Inc. will post 1.73 earnings per share for the current year.

NiSource Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 20th. Investors of record on Monday, February 3rd will be given a $0.28 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 3rd. This is an increase 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%.

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.