Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. Reduces Stake in NiSource Inc. (NYSE:NI)

Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. reduced its position in NiSource Inc. (NYSE:NI) by 6.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 204,444 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 13,119 shares during the period. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc.’s holdings in NiSource were worth $7,515,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Brooklyn Investment Group increased its stake in NiSource by 153.2% in the 4th quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 871 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 527 shares in the last quarter. Spire Wealth Management purchased a new position in NiSource in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in NiSource in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new position in NiSource in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $47,000. Finally, Intact Investment Management Inc. purchased a new position in NiSource in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $66,000. 91.64% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at NiSource

In related news, CAO Gunnar Gode sold 5,500 shares of NiSource stock in a transaction on Friday, February 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $39.92, for a total value of $219,560.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 24,758 shares in the company, valued at approximately $988,339.36. This trade represents a 18.18 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on NiSource from $39.00 to $43.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $38.13.

NiSource Price Performance

NI stock opened at $39.32 on Tuesday. NiSource Inc. has a 52-week low of $26.26 and a 52-week high of $41.45. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $38.42 and its 200-day simple moving average is $36.50. 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 capitalization of $18.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.50.

NiSource (NYSE:NI) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The utilities provider reported $0.49 earnings per share (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 period last year, the firm posted $0.53 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that NiSource Inc. will post 1.91 EPS for the current year.

NiSource Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 3rd were issued a dividend of $0.28 per share. This is a boost from NiSource’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.27. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 3rd. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.85%. NiSource’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 69.14%.

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.