NiSource Inc. (NYSE:NI) to Issue $0.28 Quarterly Dividend

NiSource Inc. (NYSE:NI) declared a quarterly dividend on Monday, May 12th, RTT News reports. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 31st will be paid a dividend of 0.28 per share by the utilities provider on Wednesday, August 20th. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.96%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 31st.

NiSource has increased its dividend by an average of 6.4% per year over the last three years and has increased its dividend annually for the last 14 consecutive years. NiSource has a dividend payout ratio of 55.7% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Research analysts expect NiSource to earn $2.03 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.12 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 55.2%.

NiSource Trading Down 1.3%

Shares of NI opened at $37.81 on Wednesday. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $39.07 and its two-hundred day moving average is $37.93. The company has a quick ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 0.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13. The stock has a market cap of $17.80 billion, a PE ratio of 23.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.53. NiSource has a 52-week low of $27.60 and a 52-week high of $41.45.

NiSource (NYSE:NI) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 7th. The utilities provider reported $0.98 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.90 by $0.08. NiSource had a net margin of 13.94% and a return on equity of 7.87%. The firm had revenue of $2.03 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.32 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.85 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that NiSource will post 1.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, CAO Gunnar Gode sold 5,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $39.92, for a total transaction of $219,560.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 24,758 shares in the company, valued at approximately $988,339.36. This represents a 18.18% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have weighed in on NI shares. Barclays raised their target price on shares of NiSource from $38.00 to $42.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, April 25th. Guggenheim boosted their price target on NiSource from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 8th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on NiSource from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, March 21st. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on NiSource from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of NiSource from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target 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.