Merrillville, Indiana-based NiSource Inc. (NI) is a regulated natural gas and electric utility company that provides natural gas and electricity to residential, commercial, and industrial customers. Valued at a market cap of $16.9 billion, the company serves its customers across six states through its local Columbia Gas and NIPSCO brands.
Companies valued at over $10 billion are typically classified as “large-cap stocks,” and NiSource fits the label perfectly with its market cap exceeding this threshold. The company distributes natural gas to approximately 3.3 million customers through nearly 55,000 miles of distribution main pipeline and the associated individual customer service lines.
NI is currently trading 6.2% below its 52-week high of $38.56, reached on Nov. 27. Shares of this utility company have increased 6.1% over the past three months, underperforming the broader Nasdaq Composite’s ($NASX) nearly 9.1% gains during the same time frame.
Nonetheless, over the past six months, shares of NI are up 27.6%, significantly outpacing NASX’s 10.4% gains over the same time frame. Moreover, over the past 52 weeks, NI has gained 38.7%, surpassing NASX’s 32.4% returns.
To confirm its bullish trend, NI has been trading above its 200-day moving average since early March and has remained above its 50-day moving average since mid-June.
Shares of NI gained 2.1% following its Q3 earnings results on Oct. 30. The company’s revenue improved 3.8% year-over-year to $1.08 billion, while its adjusted earnings of $0.20 per share grew 5.3% from the year-ago figure. A modest increase in the company’s gas distribution and electric sales led to its top and bottom-line growth.
Moreover, the company expects a CAGR of 6-8% for earnings through 2029 driven by $19.3 billion 2025-2029 base plan capital expenditures and 8-10% 2025-2029 rate base growth.
NI has outperformed its rival, DTE Energy Company (DTE), which gained 9.9% over the past 52 weeks and nearly 8.2% over six months.
Despite NI’s recent underperformance relative to Nasdaq, analysts remain strongly optimistic about its prospects. The stock has a consensus rating of “Strong Buy” from the 14 analysts covering it, and the mean price target of $38.27 suggests a modest 5.8% premium to its current levels.
