NiSource (NYSE:NI) Sets New 52-Week High – Should You Buy?

NiSource Inc. (NYSE:NI)’s share price reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $39.99 and last traded at $39.94, with a volume of 565617 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $39.86.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have issued reports on NI. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of NiSource in a research report on Monday, October 28th. They set a “buy” rating and a $39.00 target price on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of NiSource from $36.00 to $38.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Mizuho increased their price target on shares of NiSource from $38.00 to $40.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of NiSource from $39.00 to $43.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $38.13.

NiSource Stock Up 0.2 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 0.41 and a current ratio of 0.51. The stock has a market capitalization of $18.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.65, a P/E/G ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 0.54. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $37.22 and its 200 day simple moving average is $35.47.

NiSource (NYSE:NI) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The utilities provider reported $0.49 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.54 by ($0.05). NiSource had a return on equity of 7.87% and a net margin of 13.94%. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.53 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that NiSource Inc. will post 1.91 earnings per share for the current year.

NiSource Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 3rd will be issued a dividend of $0.28 per share. This is an increase from NiSource’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.27. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.80%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 3rd. NiSource’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 69.14%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CAO Gunnar Gode sold 5,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 14th. The shares were 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 directly owns 24,758 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $988,339.36. This trade represents a 18.18 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On NiSource

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in NI. Blue Trust Inc. grew its stake in shares of NiSource by 31.6% during the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 4,598 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $159,000 after acquiring an additional 1,105 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James & Associates grew its stake in shares of NiSource by 6.5% during the 3rd quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 436,224 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $15,115,000 after acquiring an additional 26,572 shares in the last quarter. Resonant Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of NiSource during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $234,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its stake in shares of NiSource by 249.6% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 30,908 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,071,000 after buying an additional 22,066 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of NiSource by 27.4% in the third quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. now owns 61,251 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,122,000 after buying an additional 13,171 shares in the last quarter. 91.64% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.