Barclays PLC Raises Position in NiSource Inc. (NYSE:NI)

Barclays PLC lifted its stake in shares of NiSource Inc. (NYSE:NI) by 25.3% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,352,182 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 273,159 shares during the quarter. Barclays PLC’s holdings in NiSource were worth $46,852,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. MCF Advisors LLC acquired a new position in NiSource during the 2nd quarter worth $25,000. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of NiSource in the 2nd quarter valued at about $25,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new position in shares of NiSource during the third quarter worth about $33,000. Family Firm Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of NiSource during the second quarter worth approximately $43,000. Finally, Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL acquired a new stake in NiSource in the second quarter valued at approximately $47,000. 91.64% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

NI has been the subject of several analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of NiSource from $35.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of NiSource from $35.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on NiSource from $36.00 to $38.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on NiSource in a report on Monday, October 28th. They set a “buy” rating and a $39.00 price target for the company. Finally, BMO Capital Markets increased 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. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $37.50.

NiSource Stock Performance

Shares of NI stock opened at $36.53 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $35.90 and its two-hundred day moving average is $32.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 0.35 and a current ratio of 0.46. NiSource Inc. has a 1 year low of $24.80 and a 1 year high of $38.56. The firm has a market cap of $17.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.14, a PEG ratio of 3.06 and a beta of 0.53.

NiSource (NYSE:NI) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The utilities provider reported $0.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.15 by $0.05. NiSource had a return on equity of 8.27% and a net margin of 14.63%. The firm had revenue of $1.08 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $986.00 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.19 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 4.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that NiSource Inc. will post 1.73 earnings per share for the current year.

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.