Friedenthal Financial Makes New $50,000 Investment in NiSource Inc. (NYSE:NI)

Friedenthal Financial bought a new position in NiSource Inc. (NYSE:NI) during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 1,445 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $50,000.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. MCF Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of NiSource in the second quarter worth $25,000. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of NiSource during the second quarter worth $25,000. First Financial Corp IN bought a new stake in shares of NiSource during the first quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Crewe Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of NiSource in the 1st quarter worth $31,000. Finally, Fidelis Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in NiSource in the first quarter worth about $43,000. Institutional investors own 91.64% of the company’s stock.

NiSource Stock Performance

Shares of NI stock opened at $35.14 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $15.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.97, a PEG ratio of 2.84 and a beta of 0.51. NiSource Inc. has a 1 year low of $24.58 and a 1 year high of $35.17. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $33.56 and its two-hundred day moving average is $30.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30, a quick ratio of 0.63 and a current ratio of 0.78.

NiSource (NYSE:NI) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 7th. The utilities provider reported $0.21 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.15 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $1.08 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.16 billion. NiSource had a net margin of 14.76% and a return on equity of 9.15%. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.11 earnings per share. Analysts predict that NiSource Inc. will post 1.72 earnings per share 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 issued a dividend of $0.265 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 31st. This represents a $1.06 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.02%. NiSource’s payout ratio is currently 69.28%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have commented on NI shares. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of NiSource from $35.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday. Bank of America began coverage on NiSource in a report on Thursday, September 12th. They set a “buy” rating and a $37.00 target price for the company. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on NiSource from $34.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, September 12th. Barclays raised their price objective on NiSource from $34.00 to $35.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 13th. Finally, Mizuho initiated coverage on shares of NiSource in a research report on Thursday, July 11th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $33.00 price target for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $35.50.

About NiSource

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.