Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. Purchases 20,935 Shares of NiSource, Inc (NYSE:NI)

by · The Cerbat Gem

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of NiSource, Inc (NYSE:NI – Free Report) by 2.0% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,054,689 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 20,935 shares during the quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. owned 0.22% of NiSource worth $42,282,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of NI. Canada Post Corp Registered Pension Plan purchased a new position in shares of NiSource in the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB grew its holdings in NiSource by 64.2% during the 1st quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 765 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 299 shares in the last quarter. Quent Capital LLC increased its holdings in NiSource by 44.7% during the 1st quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 1,003 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 310 shares during the period. Optiver Holding B.V. increased its holdings in shares of NiSource by 105.0% in the fourth quarter. Optiver Holding B.V. now owns 1,281 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 656 shares during the period. Finally, Bellwether Advisors LLC bought a new position in NiSource in the 4th quarter worth about $55,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.64% of the company’s stock.

NiSource Price Performance

NI opened at $40.11 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a current ratio of 0.52. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $39.36 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $38.63. NiSource, Inc has a 52-week low of $28.42 and a 52-week high of $41.45. The stock has a market capitalization of $18.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.68, a P/E/G ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 0.54.

NiSource (NYSE:NI – Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 7th. The utilities provider reported $0.98 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.90 by $0.08. NiSource had a return on equity of 8.41% and a net margin of 14.67%. The company had revenue of $2.03 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.32 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.85 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that NiSource, Inc will post 1.91 EPS for the current year.

NiSource Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 20th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 31st will be issued a $0.28 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 31st. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.79%. NiSource’s dividend payout ratio is currently 60.54%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Michael E. Jesanis sold 6,178 shares of the business’s 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 completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 18,541 shares in the company, valued at approximately $701,035.21. The trade was a 24.99% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Melanie B. Berman sold 6,227 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $39.42, for a total transaction of $245,468.34. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 28,882 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,138,528.44. The trade was a 17.74% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 16,405 shares of company stock worth $631,939 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Mizuho raised their price target on NiSource from $42.00 to $44.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 26th. Guggenheim raised their price target on NiSource from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on NiSource from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of NiSource from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, March 21st. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upped 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. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, NiSource has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $41.50.

Check Out Our Latest Research Report on NiSource

NiSource Profile

(Free Report)

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.

Further Reading

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding NI? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for NiSource, Inc (NYSE:NI – Free Report).