NiSource (NYSE:NI) Reaches New 52-Week High – Time to Buy?

NiSource Inc. (NYSE:NI) reached a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $38.69 and last traded at $38.72, with a volume of 120290 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $38.11.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of NiSource from $36.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Barclays increased their price target on NiSource from $35.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Mizuho boosted their price objective on NiSource from $38.00 to $40.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on NiSource in a research report on Monday, October 28th. They set a “buy” rating and a $39.00 target price for the company. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on NiSource from $35.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $37.50.

NiSource Stock Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $18.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.45, a P/E/G ratio of 2.76 and a beta of 0.54. The company has a current ratio of 0.46, a quick ratio of 0.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $36.85 and a 200-day moving average of $34.34.

NiSource (NYSE:NI) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The utilities provider reported $0.20 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 business had revenue of $1.08 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $986.00 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.19 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that NiSource Inc. will post 1.73 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On NiSource

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of NI. Brooklyn Investment Group increased its position in shares of NiSource by 153.2% during the fourth quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 871 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 527 shares in the last quarter. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new stake in shares of NiSource in the third quarter valued at about $33,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new position in shares of NiSource in the third quarter worth about $47,000. Friedenthal Financial acquired a new position in NiSource during the third quarter worth about $50,000. Finally, Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL acquired a new stake in NiSource in the 2nd quarter valued at about $47,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.64% of the company’s stock.

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.