O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC Boosts Position in NiSource Inc. (NYSE:NI)

O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC raised its stake in NiSource Inc. (NYSE:NI) by 67.7% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 45,552 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 18,392 shares during the period. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC’s holdings in NiSource were worth $1,674,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Securian Asset Management Inc. boosted its position 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 valued at $922,000 after purchasing an additional 282 shares during the period. Aviso Financial Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of NiSource by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Aviso Financial Inc. now owns 31,450 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,156,000 after acquiring an additional 300 shares during the period. Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. increased its holdings in shares of NiSource by 5.6% in the 4th quarter. Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. now owns 5,648 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $207,000 after acquiring an additional 300 shares during the period. AMG National Trust Bank raised its position in NiSource by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. AMG National Trust Bank now owns 48,716 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,788,000 after purchasing an additional 308 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Coldstream Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in NiSource by 4.1% during the 3rd quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. now owns 10,457 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $363,000 after purchasing an additional 414 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.64% of the company’s stock.

NiSource Stock Down 6.3 %

NI opened at $37.23 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 0.51 and a quick ratio of 0.41. NiSource Inc. has a 12 month low of $26.26 and a 12 month high of $41.45. The stock has a market capitalization of $17.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.98, a P/E/G ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.48. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $39.09 and a 200-day simple moving average of $37.07.

NiSource (NYSE:NI) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The utilities provider reported $0.49 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.54 by ($0.05). NiSource had a net margin of 13.94% and a return on equity of 7.87%. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.53 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that NiSource Inc. will post 1.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

NiSource Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 20th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 30th will be issued a $0.28 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 30th. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.01%. NiSource’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 69.14%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CAO Gunnar Gode sold 5,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $39.92, for a total value of $219,560.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 24,758 shares in the company, valued at $988,339.36. This trade represents a 18.18 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have commented on the stock. Mizuho lifted their price objective on shares of NiSource from $42.00 to $44.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 26th. UBS Group boosted 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. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on NiSource from $39.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $39.33.

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.