Washington Trust Bank Sells 21,019 Shares of NiSource, Inc $NI

Washington Trust Bank decreased its stake in shares of NiSource, Inc (NYSE:NI) by 12.0% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 154,810 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 21,019 shares during the quarter. Washington Trust Bank’s holdings in NiSource were worth $7,361,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Compass Financial Management LLC bought a new position in shares of NiSource in the second quarter valued at $26,000. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT raised its position in NiSource by 113.8% during the fourth quarter. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT now owns 620 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 330 shares in the last quarter. Strive Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in NiSource during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Towarzystwo Funduszy Inwestycyjnych PZU SA acquired a new stake in NiSource in the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Finally, DV Equities LLC acquired a new stake in NiSource in the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Institutional investors own 91.64% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on NI shares. KeyCorp cut their target price on shares of NiSource from $52.00 to $50.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH lowered their price target on NiSource from $51.50 to $51.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, August 17th. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of NiSource in a research note on Tuesday, July 21st. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on NiSource from $51.00 to $52.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their target price on NiSource from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, NiSource has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $49.64.

Insider Activity at NiSource

In other news, EVP Melody Birmingham sold 37,509 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.40, for a total transaction of $1,590,381.60. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 78,527 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,329,544.80. This trade represents a 32.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 0.37% of the company’s stock.

NiSource Stock Performance

NYSE NI opened at $40.57 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $19.46 billion, a PE ratio of 21.58, a P/E/G ratio of 3.02 and a beta of 0.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.31, a quick ratio of 0.41 and a current ratio of 0.50. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $44.82 and a 200-day moving average of $46.14. NiSource, Inc has a 52-week low of $38.45 and a 52-week high of $49.21.

NiSource (NYSE:NI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The utilities provider reported $0.16 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.16. The business had revenue of $1.34 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.15 billion. NiSource had a net margin of 13.20% and a return on equity of 7.95%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.22 EPS. NiSource has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.020-2.070 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that NiSource, Inc will post 2.05 EPS for the current year.

NiSource Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 30th will be given a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 30th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.0%. NiSource’s dividend payout ratio is presently 63.83%.

About NiSource

NiSource, Inc (NYSE: NI) is a publicly traded energy holding company headquartered in Merrillville, Indiana, that primarily owns and operates regulated local gas and electric utilities in the United States. Through its operating subsidiaries, the company delivers natural gas and electricity to residential, commercial and industrial customers and provides the associated distribution and transmission services that keep local energy systems functioning.

The company’s core activities include natural gas distribution, electric transmission and distribution, system operations, maintenance and emergency response.