Empowered Funds LLC Makes New Investment in NiSource, Inc $NI

Empowered Funds LLC bought a new stake in shares of NiSource, Inc (NYSE:NI) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 48,753 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $2,318,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of NI. Compass Financial Management LLC bought a new position in shares of NiSource in the second quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT increased its holdings in NiSource by 113.8% during the 4th 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 during the period. Strive Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in NiSource during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Towarzystwo Funduszy Inwestycyjnych PZU SA purchased a new stake in NiSource in the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Finally, DV Equities LLC purchased a new stake in NiSource in the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. 91.64% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

NI has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price target on shares of NiSource from $51.00 to $49.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, July 17th. Evercore set a $52.00 price objective on NiSource in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Royal Bank Of Canada assumed coverage on NiSource in a research report on Wednesday, July 1st. They set an “outperform” rating and a $52.00 target price for the company. Citigroup upped 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. Finally, Mizuho lowered their price target on NiSource from $50.00 to $48.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, August 26th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, NiSource presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $49.64.

NiSource Stock Performance

NiSource stock opened at $41.15 on Thursday. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $44.43 and its 200-day moving average price is $46.07. 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 stock has a market cap of $19.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.05 and a beta of 0.54. NiSource, Inc has a fifty-two week low of $38.45 and a fifty-two week high of $49.21.

NiSource (NYSE:NI) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The utilities provider reported $0.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.16. The company had revenue of $1.34 billion during 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 period in the previous year, the business earned $0.22 earnings per share. NiSource has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.020-2.070 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that NiSource, Inc will post 2.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

NiSource Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 30th will be issued a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 30th. NiSource’s dividend payout ratio is presently 63.83%.

Insider Activity at NiSource

In other news, EVP Melody Birmingham sold 37,509 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owned 78,527 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,329,544.80. This represents a 32.33% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 0.37% of the company’s stock.

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.