NiSource Inc. (NYSE:NI) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Buy” from Brokerages

Shares of NiSource Inc. (NYSE:NI) have been assigned an average rating of “Buy” from the eight brokerages that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating. The average 12-month price target among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $37.50.

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on NiSource in a research report on Monday, October 28th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $39.00 price target for the company. Barclays lifted their price target on NiSource from $35.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on NiSource from $34.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 12th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on NiSource from $35.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Bank of America assumed coverage on NiSource in a research report on Thursday, September 12th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $37.00 price target for the company.

NiSource Stock Performance

Shares of NiSource stock opened at $35.53 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 0.46, a quick ratio of 0.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17. The firm has a market capitalization of $16.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.53, a P/E/G ratio of 2.84 and a beta of 0.54. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $36.51 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $33.77. NiSource has a 12 month low of $24.80 and a 12 month high of $38.56.

NiSource (NYSE:NI) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The utilities provider reported $0.20 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.15 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $1.08 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $986.00 million. NiSource had a return on equity of 8.27% and a net margin of 14.63%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.19 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that NiSource will post 1.73 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On NiSource

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. QRG Capital Management Inc. raised its position in NiSource by 2.1% in the 3rd quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 15,334 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $531,000 after buying an additional 309 shares during the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of NiSource by 12.0% during the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 3,442 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $119,000 after purchasing an additional 369 shares during the period. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of NiSource by 4.1% during the 3rd quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. now owns 10,457 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $363,000 after purchasing an additional 414 shares during the period. Empirical Finance LLC grew its stake in shares of NiSource by 3.2% during the 3rd quarter. Empirical Finance LLC now owns 13,926 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $483,000 after purchasing an additional 428 shares during the period. Finally, Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC grew its stake in shares of NiSource by 1.6% during the 3rd quarter. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC now owns 27,046 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $937,000 after acquiring an additional 432 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.64% of the company’s stock.

About NiSource

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.