NiSource, Inc (NYSE:NI) Shares Sold by Spectrum Wealth Counsel LLC

Spectrum Wealth Counsel LLC lowered its stake in shares of NiSource, Inc (NYSE:NI) by 6.5% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 11,225 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 775 shares during the quarter. Spectrum Wealth Counsel LLC’s holdings in NiSource were worth $450,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Lincoln Capital Corp acquired a new position in NiSource in the 1st quarter worth approximately $2,556,000. Capital International Inc. CA acquired a new position in NiSource in the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,612,000. California Public Employees Retirement System increased its holdings in NiSource by 2.1% in the 4th quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 2,075,372 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $76,291,000 after buying an additional 43,608 shares during the period. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in NiSource by 14.0% in the 1st quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 358,469 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $14,371,000 after buying an additional 43,947 shares during the period. Finally, Hartree Partners LP acquired a new position in NiSource in the 4th quarter worth approximately $3,977,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.64% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Michael E. Jesanis sold 6,178 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $37.81, for a total transaction of $233,590.18. Following the transaction, the director owned 18,541 shares in the company, valued at $701,035.21. This trade represents a 24.99% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Melanie B. Berman sold 6,227 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $39.42, for a total value of $245,468.34. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 28,882 shares in the company, valued at $1,138,528.44. This trade represents a 17.74% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 16,405 shares of company stock worth $631,939 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on NI shares. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of NiSource from $43.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, May 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of NiSource from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, April 24th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on shares of NiSource from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, April 28th. Guggenheim increased their price target on shares of NiSource from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, May 8th. Finally, Barclays upped their price objective on NiSource from $38.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $41.50.

NiSource Trading Up 0.7%

NiSource stock opened at $42.21 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17. NiSource, Inc has a 12 month low of $30.53 and a 12 month high of $42.26. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $39.78 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $39.13. The firm has a market cap of $19.87 billion, a PE ratio of 22.82, a P/E/G ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.54.

NiSource (NYSE:NI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 7th. The utilities provider reported $0.98 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.90 by $0.08. NiSource had a return on equity of 8.41% and a net margin of 14.67%. The business had revenue of $2.03 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.32 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.85 EPS. Analysts anticipate that NiSource, Inc will post 1.91 earnings per share for the current year.

NiSource Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 20th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 31st will be given a dividend of $0.28 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 31st. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.65%. NiSource’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 60.54%.

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.