Schnieders Capital Management LLC Decreases Stock Position in NiSource Inc. (NYSE:NI)

Schnieders Capital Management LLC cut its holdings in NiSource Inc. (NYSE:NI) by 2.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 21,554 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 495 shares during the quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC’s holdings in NiSource were worth $572,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its holdings in shares of NiSource by 20.6% in the third quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 5,070,847 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $125,149,000 after purchasing an additional 865,245 shares during the period. Maple Brown Abbott Ltd increased its holdings in shares of NiSource by 25.7% in the fourth quarter. Maple Brown Abbott Ltd now owns 2,786,453 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $73,980,000 after purchasing an additional 568,980 shares during the period. Hudson Bay Capital Management LP acquired a new position in shares of NiSource in the third quarter valued at about $13,918,000. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund increased its holdings in shares of NiSource by 65.1% in the third quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 1,191,000 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $29,394,000 after purchasing an additional 469,500 shares during the period. Finally, Thompson Siegel & Walmsley LLC increased its holdings in shares of NiSource by 10.5% in the third quarter. Thompson Siegel & Walmsley LLC now owns 4,014,441 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $99,076,000 after purchasing an additional 382,569 shares during the period. 91.64% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently commented on the company. StockNews.com raised NiSource from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, February 24th. Barclays raised their target price on NiSource from $28.00 to $29.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 22nd.

NiSource Price Performance

NI traded up $0.25 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $28.18. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 4,437,571 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,224,910. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15. NiSource Inc. has a twelve month low of $22.86 and a twelve month high of $28.95. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $26.82 and its 200 day simple moving average is $26.25. The firm has a market capitalization of $12.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.00, a P/E/G ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 0.49.

NiSource (NYSE:NI) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 21st. The utilities provider reported $0.53 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.55 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $1.42 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.59 billion. NiSource had a net margin of 12.98% and a return on equity of 10.10%. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.50 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that NiSource Inc. will post 1.71 EPS for the current fiscal year.

NiSource Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 20th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 30th will be given a $0.265 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 29th. This represents a $1.06 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.76%. NiSource’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 72.11%.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Melanie B. Berman sold 11,141 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.66, for a total value of $297,019.06. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 23,720 shares in the company, valued at $632,375.20. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

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.