Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. Boosts Stock Holdings in NiSource Inc. (NYSE:NI)

Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in NiSource Inc. (NYSE:NI) by 16.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 790,057 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 109,782 shares during the quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. owned 0.17% of NiSource worth $28,750,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brooklyn Investment Group boosted its stake in shares of NiSource by 153.2% in the fourth quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 871 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 527 shares in the last quarter. Spire Wealth Management acquired a new stake in NiSource in the fourth quarter valued at $39,000. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of NiSource during the 4th quarter worth $40,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new position in shares of NiSource during the 3rd quarter worth $47,000. Finally, Intact Investment Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of NiSource in the 4th quarter valued at about $66,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.64% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CAO Gunnar Gode sold 5,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $39.92, for a total transaction of $219,560.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 24,758 shares in the company, valued at $988,339.36. This trade represents a 18.18 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 0.13% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

NI has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of NiSource from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, March 21st. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on NiSource from $39.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Mizuho lifted their price objective on NiSource from $42.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 26th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $39.33.

NiSource Stock Performance

NiSource stock opened at $39.88 on Monday. NiSource Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $26.26 and a fifty-two week high of $41.45. The company has a market capitalization of $18.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.62, a PEG ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.50. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $38.93 and a two-hundred day moving average of $36.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 0.41 and a current ratio of 0.51.

NiSource (NYSE:NI) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The utilities provider reported $0.49 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.54 by ($0.05). NiSource had a net margin of 13.94% and a return on equity of 7.87%. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.53 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that NiSource Inc. will post 1.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

NiSource Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 20th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 30th will be given a dividend of $0.28 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 30th. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.81%. NiSource’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 69.14%.

NiSource 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.