Merrillville, Indiana-based NiSource Inc. (NI) is an energy holding company that operates as a regulated natural gas and electric utility company. Valued at $18.8 billion by market cap, the company provides natural gas to approximately 2.4 million residential, commercial, and industrial customers, and also generates, transmits, and distributes electricity to approximately 0.5 million customers in various counties in the northern part of Indiana.
Companies worth $10 billion or more are generally described as “large-cap stocks,” and NI perfectly fits that description, with its market cap exceeding this mark, underscoring its size, influence, and dominance within the utilities - regulated gas industry. NI operates within a strong regulatory framework, providing stable revenue from its regulated utilities serving millions of customers. The company's focus on safety and infrastructure investment, as evidenced by its Safety Management System (SMS) and ISO 55001 certification, underscores its commitment to operational excellence and customer safety.
Despite its notable strength, NI slipped 3.3% from its 52-week high of $41.45, achieved on Mar. 4. Over the past three months, NI stock has gained 9.1%, outperforming the Dow Jones Industrials Average’s ($DOWI) 2.3% losses during the same time frame.
In the longer term, shares of NI rose 16.6% over the past six months and climbed 44.9% over the past 52 weeks, outperforming DOWI’s six-month marginal losses and 5.5% returns over the last year.
To confirm the bullish trend, NI has been trading above its 50-day and 200-day moving averages over the past year, with some fluctuations.
NI’s focus on modernizing infrastructure and adding clean assets has led to strong outperformance in the utility sector. With a 100% regulated business model and planned investments to improve reliability and safety, NiSource has solid growth opportunities.
On Feb. 12, NI shares closed up by 1% after reporting its Q4 results. Its adjusted EPS declined 7.5% year over year to $0.49. NI expects full-year adjusted EPS in the range of $1.85 to $1.89.
In the competitive arena of utilities - regulated gas, Atmos Energy Corporation (ATO) has taken the lead over NI, showing resilience with 30% gains over the past 52 weeks and a 12.2% uptick on a six-month basis.
Wall Street analysts are bullish on NI’s prospects. The stock has a consensus “Strong Buy” rating from the 15 analysts covering it, and the mean price target of $41.89 suggests a potential upside of 4.5% from current price levels.
