NiSource, Inc (NYSE:NI) Receives Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Shares of NiSource, Inc (NYSE:NI) have been given a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” by the twelve research firms that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $47.20.

NI has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of NiSource from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, January 3rd. BMO Capital Markets set a $50.00 price target on shares of NiSource in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. Citigroup lifted their price target on NiSource from $44.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of NiSource in a report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Barclays set a $45.00 price objective on NiSource in a research note on Monday, December 8th.

NiSource Stock Down 1.1%

NI stock opened at $46.50 on Tuesday. NiSource has a twelve month low of $35.64 and a twelve month high of $47.67. The company has a current ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.33. The company has a market capitalization of $22.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.85, a PEG ratio of 3.81 and a beta of 0.64. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $44.35 and a 200-day simple moving average of $43.06.

NiSource (NYSE:NI) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The utilities provider reported $0.51 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.49 by $0.02. NiSource had a net margin of 13.99% and a return on equity of 8.07%. The firm had revenue of $1.90 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.20 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.49 earnings per share. NiSource has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.020-2.070 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that NiSource will post 1.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

NiSource Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 20th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 3rd were given a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 3rd. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.6%. This is an increase from NiSource’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. NiSource’s dividend payout ratio is currently 61.54%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On NiSource

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Hsbc Holdings PLC increased its stake in NiSource by 7.7% during the fourth quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 742,753 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $31,027,000 after purchasing an additional 53,167 shares during the last quarter. SHP Wealth Management bought a new position in shares of NiSource in the 4th quarter worth about $178,000. SG Trading Solutions LLC acquired a new position in shares of NiSource in the 4th quarter valued at about $484,000. Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of NiSource by 34.7% in the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 59,939 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,503,000 after buying an additional 15,438 shares during the period. Finally, T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. grew its position in shares of NiSource by 19.0% during the 4th quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 51,504,257 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,150,818,000 after buying an additional 8,240,227 shares during the last quarter. 91.64% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

NiSource Company Profile

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.