Ausbil Investment Management Ltd Takes $6.87 Million Position in NiSource Inc. (NYSE:NI)

Ausbil Investment Management Ltd acquired a new position in shares of NiSource Inc. (NYSE:NI) during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund acquired 198,286 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $6,871,000. NiSource comprises about 2.0% of Ausbil Investment Management Ltd’s holdings, making the stock its 18th biggest holding.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co lifted its position in NiSource by 7.1% in the 1st quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 438,845 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $12,144,000 after acquiring an additional 29,055 shares in the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of NiSource by 12.6% during the first quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 515,724 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $14,265,000 after buying an additional 57,658 shares in the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. raised its position in NiSource by 26.0% in the 1st quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 796,693 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $22,036,000 after buying an additional 164,532 shares during the last quarter. Brookstone Capital Management bought a new stake in NiSource in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $9,686,000. Finally, California State Teachers Retirement System boosted its position in NiSource by 3.5% during the 1st quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 598,359 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $16,551,000 after acquiring an additional 20,060 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.64% of the company’s stock.

NiSource Price Performance

NiSource stock remained flat at $35.31 during mid-day trading on Thursday. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 325,767 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,037,591. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30, a quick ratio of 0.63 and a current ratio of 0.78. The company has a fifty day moving average of $33.76 and a 200 day moving average of $30.68. NiSource Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $24.58 and a fifty-two week high of $35.47. The stock has a market capitalization of $15.83 billion, a PE ratio of 23.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.84 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 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.15 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $1.08 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.16 billion. NiSource had a net margin of 14.76% and a return on equity of 9.15%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.11 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that NiSource Inc. will post 1.72 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

NiSource Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Investors of record on Thursday, October 31st will be paid a $0.265 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, October 31st. This represents a $1.06 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.00%. NiSource’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 69.28%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on NI shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of NiSource from $36.00 to $38.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on NiSource from $34.00 to $36.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, September 12th. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on NiSource from $32.00 to $34.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Bank of America initiated coverage on NiSource in a research report on Thursday, September 12th. They set a “buy” rating and a $37.00 price target for the company. Finally, Mizuho assumed coverage on NiSource in a research report on Thursday, July 11th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $33.00 price target on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $36.29.

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.