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

Shares of NiSource Inc. (NYSE:NI) have received a consensus rating of “Buy” from the eight analysts that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating. The average 12 month target price among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $37.50.

Several research firms have weighed in on NI. Mizuho raised their price objective on shares of NiSource from $38.00 to $40.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on shares of NiSource from $34.00 to $36.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, September 12th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on NiSource from $35.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on NiSource from $36.00 to $38.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Barclays boosted their target price on NiSource from $35.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st.

NiSource Stock Up 1.8 %

Shares of NI opened at $36.42 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $17.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.07, a PEG ratio of 2.84 and a beta of 0.54. NiSource has a one year low of $24.80 and a one year high of $38.56. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $36.56 and its 200-day simple moving average is $33.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 0.46 and a quick ratio of 0.35.

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On NiSource

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. MCF Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of NiSource during the 2nd quarter worth about $25,000. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC bought a new position in NiSource during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new position in NiSource during the third quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL bought a new stake in NiSource in the second quarter valued at approximately $47,000. Finally, Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in NiSource in the third quarter worth $47,000. 91.64% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.