Janus Henderson Group PLC Lowers Position in NiSource Inc. (NYSE:NI)

Janus Henderson Group PLC lessened its holdings in shares of NiSource Inc. (NYSE:NI) by 8.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 73,029 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 7,131 shares during the quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC’s holdings in NiSource were worth $2,685,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC raised its stake in NiSource by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 13,987 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $514,000 after purchasing an additional 256 shares in the last quarter. Securian Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of NiSource by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Securian Asset Management Inc. now owns 25,087 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $922,000 after buying an additional 282 shares during the last quarter. Aviso Financial Inc. raised its position in shares of NiSource by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Aviso Financial Inc. now owns 31,450 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,156,000 after buying an additional 300 shares in the last quarter. Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. grew its position in NiSource by 5.6% in the fourth quarter. Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. now owns 5,648 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $207,000 after acquiring an additional 300 shares in the last quarter. Finally, AMG National Trust Bank grew its position in NiSource by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. AMG National Trust Bank now owns 48,716 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,788,000 after acquiring an additional 308 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.64% of the company’s stock.

NiSource Stock Performance

NiSource stock opened at $39.49 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.51, a quick ratio of 0.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13. The firm has a market cap of $18.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.38, a P/E/G ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.53. NiSource Inc. has a 1-year low of $27.60 and a 1-year high of $41.45. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $39.10 and a 200-day moving average of $38.08.

NiSource (NYSE:NI) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 7th. The utilities provider reported $0.98 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.90 by $0.08. NiSource had a return on equity of 7.87% and a net margin of 13.94%. The firm had revenue of $2.03 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.32 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.85 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that NiSource Inc. will post 1.91 EPS for the current year.

NiSource Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 20th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 31st will be given a dividend of $0.28 per share. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.84%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 31st. NiSource’s payout ratio is currently 60.54%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other NiSource news, Director Michael E. Jesanis sold 6,178 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $37.81, for a total transaction of $233,590.18. Following the transaction, the director now owns 18,541 shares in the company, valued at approximately $701,035.21. This represents a 24.99% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. UBS Group raised their price target on NiSource from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, March 21st. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of NiSource from $38.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Guggenheim raised their price objective on NiSource from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on NiSource from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Finally, Mizuho increased their target price on NiSource from $42.00 to $44.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 26th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $41.50.

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.