NorthWestern (NWE) Competitors

NorthWestern logo
$70.95 +0.99 (+1.42%)
As of 04:00 PM Eastern

NWE vs. LNT, AEE, ATO, AVA, and BKH

Should you buy NorthWestern stock or one of its competitors? MarketBeat compares NorthWestern with other companies and stocks that may be similar based on industry, sector, market capitalization, business model, investor interest, or shared news coverage. Companies and stocks commonly compared with NorthWestern include Alliant Energy (LNT), Ameren (AEE), Atmos Energy (ATO), Avista (AVA), and Black Hills (BKH). These companies are all part of the "utilities" sector.

How does NorthWestern compare to Alliant Energy?

NorthWestern (NASDAQ:NWE) and Alliant Energy (NASDAQ:LNT) are both utilities companies, but which is the superior stock? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, risk, valuation, profitability, dividends, earnings and media sentiment.

96.1% of NorthWestern shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 79.9% of Alliant Energy shares are held by institutional investors. 0.6% of NorthWestern shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 0.3% of Alliant Energy shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Alliant Energy has a net margin of 18.58% compared to NorthWestern's net margin of 10.21%. Alliant Energy's return on equity of 11.37% beat NorthWestern's return on equity.

Company Net Margins Return on Equity Return on Assets
NorthWestern10.21% 7.80% 2.69%
Alliant Energy 18.58%11.37%3.38%

NorthWestern currently has a consensus price target of $68.30, indicating a potential downside of 3.74%. Alliant Energy has a consensus price target of $76.60, indicating a potential upside of 2.72%. Given Alliant Energy's stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Alliant Energy is more favorable than NorthWestern.

Company Sell Ratings Hold Ratings Buy Ratings Strong Buy Ratings Rating Score
NorthWestern
1 Sell rating(s)
2 Hold rating(s)
3 Buy rating(s)
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
2.33
Alliant Energy
0 Sell rating(s)
4 Hold rating(s)
9 Buy rating(s)
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
2.69

NorthWestern has a beta of 0.34, meaning that its share price is 66% less volatile than the broader market. Comparatively, Alliant Energy has a beta of 0.56, meaning that its share price is 44% less volatile than the broader market.

NorthWestern pays an annual dividend of $2.68 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.8%. Alliant Energy pays an annual dividend of $2.14 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.9%. NorthWestern pays out 98.5% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Alliant Energy pays out 67.1% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. NorthWestern has increased its dividend for 21 consecutive years and Alliant Energy has increased its dividend for 22 consecutive years.

In the previous week, Alliant Energy had 2 more articles in the media than NorthWestern. MarketBeat recorded 4 mentions for Alliant Energy and 2 mentions for NorthWestern. Alliant Energy's average media sentiment score of 1.05 beat NorthWestern's score of 0.00 indicating that Alliant Energy is being referred to more favorably in the news media.

Company Very Positive Positive Neutral Negative Very Negative Overall Sentiment
NorthWestern
0 Very Positive mention(s)
0 Positive mention(s)
1 Neutral mention(s)
0 Negative mention(s)
0 Very Negative mention(s)
Neutral
Alliant Energy
2 Very Positive mention(s)
2 Positive mention(s)
0 Neutral mention(s)
0 Negative mention(s)
0 Very Negative mention(s)
Positive

Alliant Energy has higher revenue and earnings than NorthWestern. Alliant Energy is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than NorthWestern, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

CompanyGross RevenuePrice/Sales RatioNet IncomeEarnings Per SharePrice/Earnings Ratio
NorthWestern$1.61B2.71$181.09M$2.7226.08
Alliant Energy$4.36B4.42$810M$3.1923.38

Summary

Alliant Energy beats NorthWestern on 15 of the 19 factors compared between the two stocks.

How does NorthWestern compare to Ameren?

Ameren (NYSE:AEE) and NorthWestern (NASDAQ:NWE) are both utilities companies, but which is the superior investment? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their dividends, profitability, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, earnings, risk, media sentiment and valuation.

Ameren has higher revenue and earnings than NorthWestern. Ameren is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than NorthWestern, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

CompanyGross RevenuePrice/Sales RatioNet IncomeEarnings Per SharePrice/Earnings Ratio
Ameren$8.80B3.52$1.46B$5.5620.13
NorthWestern$1.61B2.71$181.09M$2.7226.08

Ameren pays an annual dividend of $3.00 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.7%. NorthWestern pays an annual dividend of $2.68 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.8%. Ameren pays out 54.0% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. NorthWestern pays out 98.5% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Ameren has raised its dividend for 12 consecutive years and NorthWestern has raised its dividend for 21 consecutive years. NorthWestern is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Ameren presently has a consensus target price of $117.54, indicating a potential upside of 5.04%. NorthWestern has a consensus target price of $68.30, indicating a potential downside of 3.74%. Given Ameren's stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Ameren is more favorable than NorthWestern.

Company Sell Ratings Hold Ratings Buy Ratings Strong Buy Ratings Rating Score
Ameren
0 Sell rating(s)
5 Hold rating(s)
9 Buy rating(s)
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
2.64
NorthWestern
1 Sell rating(s)
2 Hold rating(s)
3 Buy rating(s)
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
2.33

Ameren has a beta of 0.47, indicating that its stock price is 53% less volatile than the broader market. Comparatively, NorthWestern has a beta of 0.34, indicating that its stock price is 66% less volatile than the broader market.

79.1% of Ameren shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 96.1% of NorthWestern shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.3% of Ameren shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 0.6% of NorthWestern shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Ameren has a net margin of 17.17% compared to NorthWestern's net margin of 10.21%. Ameren's return on equity of 10.94% beat NorthWestern's return on equity.

Company Net Margins Return on Equity Return on Assets
Ameren17.17% 10.94% 2.99%
NorthWestern 10.21%7.80%2.69%

In the previous week, Ameren had 5 more articles in the media than NorthWestern. MarketBeat recorded 7 mentions for Ameren and 2 mentions for NorthWestern. Ameren's average media sentiment score of 1.41 beat NorthWestern's score of 0.00 indicating that Ameren is being referred to more favorably in the media.

Company Very Positive Positive Neutral Negative Very Negative Overall Sentiment
Ameren
7 Very Positive mention(s)
0 Positive mention(s)
0 Neutral mention(s)
0 Negative mention(s)
0 Very Negative mention(s)
Positive
NorthWestern
0 Very Positive mention(s)
0 Positive mention(s)
1 Neutral mention(s)
0 Negative mention(s)
0 Very Negative mention(s)
Neutral

Summary

Ameren beats NorthWestern on 14 of the 19 factors compared between the two stocks.

How does NorthWestern compare to Atmos Energy?

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) and NorthWestern (NASDAQ:NWE) are both utilities companies, but which is the superior investment? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their valuation, institutional ownership, dividends, earnings, profitability, media sentiment, analyst recommendations and risk.

Atmos Energy has higher revenue and earnings than NorthWestern. Atmos Energy is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than NorthWestern, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

CompanyGross RevenuePrice/Sales RatioNet IncomeEarnings Per SharePrice/Earnings Ratio
Atmos Energy$4.70B6.09$1.20B$8.1421.09
NorthWestern$1.61B2.71$181.09M$2.7226.08

Atmos Energy pays an annual dividend of $4.00 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.3%. NorthWestern pays an annual dividend of $2.68 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.8%. Atmos Energy pays out 49.1% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. NorthWestern pays out 98.5% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Atmos Energy has increased its dividend for 41 consecutive years and NorthWestern has increased its dividend for 21 consecutive years.

Atmos Energy has a net margin of 27.58% compared to NorthWestern's net margin of 10.21%. Atmos Energy's return on equity of 9.59% beat NorthWestern's return on equity.

Company Net Margins Return on Equity Return on Assets
Atmos Energy27.58% 9.59% 4.64%
NorthWestern 10.21%7.80%2.69%

Atmos Energy has a beta of 0.6, meaning that its stock price is 40% less volatile than the broader market. Comparatively, NorthWestern has a beta of 0.34, meaning that its stock price is 66% less volatile than the broader market.

In the previous week, Atmos Energy had 2 more articles in the media than NorthWestern. MarketBeat recorded 4 mentions for Atmos Energy and 2 mentions for NorthWestern. Atmos Energy's average media sentiment score of 1.10 beat NorthWestern's score of 0.00 indicating that Atmos Energy is being referred to more favorably in the media.

Company Very Positive Positive Neutral Negative Very Negative Overall Sentiment
Atmos Energy
3 Very Positive mention(s)
1 Positive mention(s)
0 Neutral mention(s)
0 Negative mention(s)
0 Very Negative mention(s)
Positive
NorthWestern
0 Very Positive mention(s)
0 Positive mention(s)
1 Neutral mention(s)
0 Negative mention(s)
0 Very Negative mention(s)
Neutral

Atmos Energy presently has a consensus price target of $181.90, indicating a potential upside of 5.95%. NorthWestern has a consensus price target of $68.30, indicating a potential downside of 3.74%. Given Atmos Energy's higher probable upside, equities analysts clearly believe Atmos Energy is more favorable than NorthWestern.

Company Sell Ratings Hold Ratings Buy Ratings Strong Buy Ratings Rating Score
Atmos Energy
0 Sell rating(s)
10 Hold rating(s)
1 Buy rating(s)
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
2.09
NorthWestern
1 Sell rating(s)
2 Hold rating(s)
3 Buy rating(s)
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
2.33

90.2% of Atmos Energy shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 96.1% of NorthWestern shares are held by institutional investors. 0.4% of Atmos Energy shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 0.6% of NorthWestern shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Summary

Atmos Energy beats NorthWestern on 13 of the 19 factors compared between the two stocks.

How does NorthWestern compare to Avista?

Avista (NYSE:AVA) and NorthWestern (NASDAQ:NWE) are both mid-cap utilities companies, but which is the superior stock? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their risk, dividends, profitability, valuation, analyst recommendations, media sentiment, institutional ownership and earnings.

Avista has a beta of 0.24, suggesting that its stock price is 76% less volatile than the broader market. Comparatively, NorthWestern has a beta of 0.34, suggesting that its stock price is 66% less volatile than the broader market.

Avista presently has a consensus target price of $39.75, suggesting a potential downside of 2.36%. NorthWestern has a consensus target price of $68.30, suggesting a potential downside of 3.74%. Given Avista's higher probable upside, equities research analysts plainly believe Avista is more favorable than NorthWestern.

Company Sell Ratings Hold Ratings Buy Ratings Strong Buy Ratings Rating Score
Avista
0 Sell rating(s)
6 Hold rating(s)
1 Buy rating(s)
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
2.14
NorthWestern
1 Sell rating(s)
2 Hold rating(s)
3 Buy rating(s)
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
2.33

Avista has higher revenue and earnings than NorthWestern. Avista is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than NorthWestern, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

CompanyGross RevenuePrice/Sales RatioNet IncomeEarnings Per SharePrice/Earnings Ratio
Avista$1.96B1.71$193M$2.5116.22
NorthWestern$1.61B2.71$181.09M$2.7226.08

85.2% of Avista shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 96.1% of NorthWestern shares are held by institutional investors. 0.8% of Avista shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 0.6% of NorthWestern shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Avista pays an annual dividend of $1.97 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.8%. NorthWestern pays an annual dividend of $2.68 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.8%. Avista pays out 78.5% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. NorthWestern pays out 98.5% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Avista has raised its dividend for 23 consecutive years and NorthWestern has raised its dividend for 21 consecutive years. Avista is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

In the previous week, Avista and Avista both had 2 articles in the media. Avista's average media sentiment score of 0.60 beat NorthWestern's score of 0.00 indicating that Avista is being referred to more favorably in the media.

Company Very Positive Positive Neutral Negative Very Negative Overall Sentiment
Avista
1 Very Positive mention(s)
0 Positive mention(s)
1 Neutral mention(s)
0 Negative mention(s)
0 Very Negative mention(s)
Positive
NorthWestern
0 Very Positive mention(s)
0 Positive mention(s)
1 Neutral mention(s)
0 Negative mention(s)
0 Very Negative mention(s)
Neutral

Avista has a net margin of 10.75% compared to NorthWestern's net margin of 10.21%. NorthWestern's return on equity of 7.80% beat Avista's return on equity.

Company Net Margins Return on Equity Return on Assets
Avista10.75% 7.65% 2.50%
NorthWestern 10.21%7.80%2.69%

Summary

Avista and NorthWestern tied by winning 9 of the 18 factors compared between the two stocks.

How does NorthWestern compare to Black Hills?

Black Hills (NYSE:BKH) and NorthWestern (NASDAQ:NWE) are both mid-cap utilities companies, but which is the better stock? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, valuation, profitability, risk, earnings, dividends and media sentiment.

Black Hills has higher revenue and earnings than NorthWestern. Black Hills is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than NorthWestern, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

CompanyGross RevenuePrice/Sales RatioNet IncomeEarnings Per SharePrice/Earnings Ratio
Black Hills$2.31B2.44$291.60M$3.8419.24
NorthWestern$1.61B2.71$181.09M$2.7226.08

Black Hills has a beta of 0.72, meaning that its share price is 28% less volatile than the broader market. Comparatively, NorthWestern has a beta of 0.34, meaning that its share price is 66% less volatile than the broader market.

Black Hills pays an annual dividend of $2.81 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.8%. NorthWestern pays an annual dividend of $2.68 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.8%. Black Hills pays out 73.2% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. NorthWestern pays out 98.5% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Black Hills has raised its dividend for 55 consecutive years and NorthWestern has raised its dividend for 21 consecutive years. Black Hills is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

In the previous week, Black Hills had 2 more articles in the media than NorthWestern. MarketBeat recorded 4 mentions for Black Hills and 2 mentions for NorthWestern. Black Hills' average media sentiment score of 1.30 beat NorthWestern's score of 0.00 indicating that Black Hills is being referred to more favorably in the media.

Company Very Positive Positive Neutral Negative Very Negative Overall Sentiment
Black Hills
2 Very Positive mention(s)
2 Positive mention(s)
0 Neutral mention(s)
0 Negative mention(s)
0 Very Negative mention(s)
Positive
NorthWestern
0 Very Positive mention(s)
0 Positive mention(s)
1 Neutral mention(s)
0 Negative mention(s)
0 Very Negative mention(s)
Neutral

Black Hills has a net margin of 12.61% compared to NorthWestern's net margin of 10.21%. NorthWestern's return on equity of 7.80% beat Black Hills' return on equity.

Company Net Margins Return on Equity Return on Assets
Black Hills12.61% 7.77% 2.86%
NorthWestern 10.21%7.80%2.69%

Black Hills currently has a consensus target price of $81.17, indicating a potential upside of 9.85%. NorthWestern has a consensus target price of $68.30, indicating a potential downside of 3.74%. Given Black Hills' stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Black Hills is more favorable than NorthWestern.

Company Sell Ratings Hold Ratings Buy Ratings Strong Buy Ratings Rating Score
Black Hills
0 Sell rating(s)
0 Hold rating(s)
6 Buy rating(s)
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
3.00
NorthWestern
1 Sell rating(s)
2 Hold rating(s)
3 Buy rating(s)
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
2.33

86.7% of Black Hills shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 96.1% of NorthWestern shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.6% of Black Hills shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 0.6% of NorthWestern shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Summary

Black Hills beats NorthWestern on 14 of the 19 factors compared between the two stocks.

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New MarketBeat Followers Over Time

This chart shows the number of new MarketBeat users adding NWE and its top 5 competitors to their watchlist. Each company is represented with a line over a 90 day period.
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Media Sentiment Over Time

This chart shows the average media sentiment of NASDAQ and its competitors over the past 90 days as caculated by MarketBeat. The averaged score is equivalent to the following: Very Negative Sentiment <= -1.5, Negative Sentiment > -1.5 and <= -0.5, Neutral Sentiment > -0.5 and < 0.5, Positive Sentiment >= 0.5 and < 1.5, and Very Positive Sentiment >= 1.5.
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NWE vs. The Competition

MetricNorthWesternUTIL IndustryUtilities SectorNASDAQ Exchange
Market Cap$4.30B$28.96B$18.64B$12.39B
Dividend Yield3.83%3.44%3.99%5.83%
P/E Ratio26.0822.2220.2323.97
Price / Sales2.714.9944.45109.59
Price / Cash9.069.2819.2654.51
Price / Book1.513.202.466.50
Net Income$181.09M$1.56B$785.96M$336.88M
7 Day Performance0.55%-0.43%-0.49%-0.22%
1 Month Performance-1.36%-0.82%-1.71%0.77%
1 Year Performance37.15%18.59%14.87%31.57%

NorthWestern Competitors List

CompanyMarketRankShare PriceAnalysts' Price Target1Y Price PerformanceMarket CapRevenueP/E RatioEmployee CountIndicator(s)
NWE
NorthWestern
3.4727 of 5 stars
$70.95
+1.4%
$68.30
-3.7%
+37.6%$4.30B$1.61B26.081,667
LNT
Alliant Energy
3.0241 of 5 stars
$73.33
+0.3%
$76.60
+4.5%
+20.9%$18.92B$4.36B22.972,948
AEE
Ameren
4.3122 of 5 stars
$109.62
+0.6%
$117.54
+7.2%
+16.0%$30.29B$8.80B19.698,913
ATO
Atmos Energy
3.69 of 5 stars
$170.20
+0.1%
$181.90
+6.9%
+10.5%$28.38B$4.88B20.895,487
AVA
Avista
3.9653 of 5 stars
$40.89
-3.6%
$39.75
-2.8%
+6.2%$3.38B$1.92B16.271,929

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This page (NASDAQ:NWE) was last updated on 6/23/2026 by MarketBeat.com Staff.
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