NiSource downgraded to Hold from Buy at Jefferies

Jefferies downgraded NiSource (NI) to Hold from Buy with a price target of $44, down from $48. The firm says two Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission commissioner exits and a new Office of Utility Consumer Counselor head with a mandate to cut rates heighten Indiana’s political and regulatory complexity. Jefferies cites the increasingly political nature of Indiana’s regulatory landscape and the uncertainty for the downgrade of NiSource.