Principal Financial Group Inc. cut its holdings in shares of NiSource Inc. (NYSE:NI) by 5.2% during the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 474,677 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 26,289 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in NiSource were worth $11,445,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.
Several other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Capital Asset Advisory Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of NiSource during the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. AGF Investments LLC purchased a new stake in NiSource during the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. Alpha DNA Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of NiSource in the fourth quarter valued at about $32,000. Klaas Financial Asset Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of NiSource in the fourth quarter worth about $37,000. Finally, AlphaMark Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of NiSource by 263.3% during the first quarter. AlphaMark Advisors LLC now owns 2,725 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $66,000 after purchasing an additional 1,975 shares during the period. 92.03% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
Shares of NiSource stock opened at $26.01 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.79, a current ratio of 0.71 and a quick ratio of 0.60. NiSource Inc. has a twelve month low of $21.09 and a twelve month high of $26.60. The stock has a market cap of $10.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 72.25, a PEG ratio of 3.08 and a beta of 0.31. The company has a 50-day moving average of $25.50.
NiSource (NYSE:NI) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 5th. The utilities provider reported $0.77 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the Zacks’ consensus estimate of $0.77. NiSource had a return on equity of 11.30% and a net margin of 4.38%. The firm had revenue of $1.55 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.87 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.76 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that NiSource Inc. will post 1.34 EPS for the current fiscal year.
The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 20th. Investors of record on Friday, July 30th will be given a dividend of $0.22 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 29th. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.38%. NiSource’s payout ratio is presently 66.67%.
A number of research firms recently issued reports on NI. Evercore ISI restated an “in-line” rating and set a $27.00 target price (up from $25.00) on shares of NiSource in a research report on Thursday, April 29th. Zacks Investment Research lowered NiSource from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $27.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Thursday, April 15th. Credit Suisse Group boosted their price target on NiSource from $28.00 to $29.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, April 16th. UBS Group raised shares of NiSource from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $27.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 22nd. Finally, TheStreet downgraded shares of NiSource from a “b-” rating to a “c+” rating in a report on Monday, May 17th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. NiSource currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $26.33.
In related news, SVP Daniel A. Creekmur sold 2,308 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $25.80, for a total transaction of $59,546.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 10,173 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $262,463.40. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Eric L. Butler purchased 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 25th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $25.38 per share, for a total transaction of $126,900.00. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.37% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.
About NiSource
NiSource Inc, an energy holding company, operates as a regulated natural gas and electric utility company in the United States. The company operates through two segments, Gas Distribution Operations and Electric Operations. It provides natural gas services and transportation for residential, commercial, and industrial customers; generates, transmits, and distributes electricity; and wholesale and transmission transaction services.
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