NiSource (NYSE:NI) Reaches New 12-Month High Following Analyst Upgrade

NiSource Inc. (NYSE:NI) hit a new 52-week high during trading on Wednesday after Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on the stock from $35.00 to $38.00. Wells Fargo & Company currently has an overweight rating on the stock. NiSource traded as high as $35.13 and last traded at $35.10, with a volume of 2589289 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $34.49.

Several other research analysts also recently weighed in on the company. Barclays boosted their price target on NiSource from $34.00 to $35.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 13th. Bank of America assumed coverage on NiSource in a report on Thursday, September 12th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $37.00 price target for the company. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on NiSource from $34.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 12th. Mizuho assumed coverage on NiSource in a research note on Thursday, July 11th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $33.00 price target for the company. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their price objective on NiSource from $32.00 to $34.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, August 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $35.50.

Institutional Trading of NiSource

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. MCF Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of NiSource during the second quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC bought a new stake in NiSource in the 2nd quarter valued at $25,000. First Financial Corp IN acquired a new position in shares of NiSource in the 1st quarter valued at $31,000. Crewe Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of NiSource during the 1st quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, Fidelis Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of NiSource in the 1st quarter worth approximately $43,000. 91.64% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

NiSource Price Performance

The company has a 50-day moving average of $33.32 and a 200 day moving average of $30.38. 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 firm has a market cap of $15.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.76, a P/E/G ratio of 2.84 and a beta of 0.51.

NiSource (NYSE:NI) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The utilities provider reported $0.21 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.16 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.11 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that NiSource Inc. will post 1.72 EPS for the current year.

NiSource Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 31st will be issued a $0.265 dividend. This represents a $1.06 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.02%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 31st. NiSource’s payout ratio 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.