Raymond James Trust N.A. cut its holdings in NiSource Inc. (NYSE:NI – Get Rating) by 18.4% during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 7,096 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 1,596 shares during the period. Raymond James Trust N.A.'s holdings in NiSource were worth $209,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in NI. Morningstar Investment Services LLC lifted its stake in NiSource by 19.7% during the first quarter. Morningstar Investment Services LLC now owns 16,014 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $505,000 after purchasing an additional 2,635 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James & Associates lifted its stake in NiSource by 11.9% during the first quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 429,411 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $13,655,000 after purchasing an additional 45,665 shares in the last quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in NiSource during the fourth quarter worth $3,108,000. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. lifted its stake in NiSource by 45.1% during the fourth quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. now owns 798,462 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $22,046,000 after purchasing an additional 248,100 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its stake in NiSource by 41.7% during the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 2,381,731 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $65,760,000 after purchasing an additional 701,468 shares in the last quarter. 95.79% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have commented on NI shares. Barclays decreased their price target on NiSource from $35.00 to $32.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, July 18th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on NiSource from $32.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 4th. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on NiSource to $33.00 in a research report on Tuesday, August 9th. Finally, Edward Jones raised NiSource from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 27th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $32.29.

NiSource Stock Performance

NiSource (NYSE:NI – Get Rating) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, August 3rd. The utilities provider reported $0.12 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.11 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $1.18 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.08 billion. NiSource had a return on equity of 10.57% and a net margin of 13.07%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.13 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that NiSource Inc. will post 1.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

NiSource Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 18th. Shareholders of record on Monday, October 31st will be issued a dividend of $0.235 per share. This represents a $0.94 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.45%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 28th. NiSource's payout ratio is 61.04%.

About NiSource

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NiSource, Inc is a holding company, which engages in energy solutions. Through its subsidiaries, it provides natural gas, electricity, and other products and services. It operates through the following segments: Gas Distribution Operations and Electric Operations. The Gas Distribution Operations segment focuses on natural gas service and transportation for residential, commercial, and industrial customers.

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