Artemis Investment Management LLP Invests $21.83 Million in NiSource Inc. (NYSE:NI)

Artemis Investment Management LLP bought a new stake in NiSource Inc. (NYSE:NI) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 593,875 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $21,831,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of NI. Brooklyn Investment Group lifted its stake in 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 during the period. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new position in shares of NiSource in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $33,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL bought a new position in shares of NiSource during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $47,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in NiSource in the 3rd quarter valued at $47,000. Finally, Friedenthal Financial bought a new stake in NiSource in the third quarter valued at $50,000. 91.64% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

NiSource Price Performance

Shares of NI opened at $38.13 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $17.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.60 and a beta of 0.54. NiSource Inc. has a 1 year low of $24.80 and a 1 year high of $38.56. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $36.82 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $34.23. The company has a current ratio of 0.46, a quick ratio of 0.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17.

NiSource (NYSE:NI) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The utilities provider reported $0.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.15 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $1.08 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $986.00 million. NiSource had a net margin of 14.63% and a return on equity of 8.27%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.19 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that NiSource Inc. will post 1.73 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

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.