NWE vs NWN Stock Comparison
Compare NWE and NWN across AIQ Score, fundamentals, valuation, momentum, risk, analyst expectations and current market evidence.
What is the main difference between NWE and NWN?
NWE leads the current stock comparison as Northwestern Energy Group Inc, with the clearest separation coming from quality and the broader AIQ evidence mix.
AlgovestIQ AIQ Comparison
Northwestern Energy Group Inc vs Northwest Natural Holding Company
NWE leads
NWE leads by 5 AIQ points, primarily on Quality and Momentum, having only recently taken the lead back from NWN. Wall Street currently favors NWN on target upside.
Fragile: 3 of 6 evidence groups support NWE, the lead recently changed hands, and its signal state is cleanly positive.
Northwestern Energy Group Inc
Northwest Natural Holding Company
The Algovestiq AIQ Score currently favors NWE over NWN, 49 versus 44 as of Sep 11, 2026. NWE's advantage is driven primarily by stronger quality and momentum, while NWN holds the stronger value profile. NWE also shows the stronger technical structure relative to its 50-day moving average, though analyst target upside currently favors NWN. 3 of 6 covered evidence groups favor NWE today, and the comparison is rated Fragile on stability: the AIQ gap is narrow at 5 points. NWE lead: Reversed — NWN led by 2 AIQ points 30 sessions ago; NWE now leads by 5.
Compare Northwestern Energy Group Inc and Northwest Natural Holding Company across the Algovestiq AIQ Score, valuation, quality, momentum, risk, technicals and analyst expectations.
Performance over time
Price-return comparison using available daily close history.
Total return comparison
Growth of $10,000
Based on available close-price history. Distribution reinvestment is not added unless already reflected in the source series.
Compare NWE and NWN against another ticker
Open a multi-ticker workspace without changing this focused pair page.
AIQ Factor Divergence
Where the two separate, on the four dimensions behind the AIQ Score. Bars read outward from a shared zero: further from the centre is a wider gap.
- Quality47 vs 33NWE +14
- Momentum45 vs 32NWE +13
- Value53 vs 61NWN +8
- Risk Resilience51 vs 52Even
3 of 6 evidence groups favor NWE. NWE’s edge is concentrated in quality and momentum; NWN keeps a meaningful value edge.
What changed since the last close
Latest scored session 2026-09-10, compared against the prior scored session 2026-09-09.
Largest factor move: Momentum -4
No new signals fired.
Largest factor move: Momentum -1
No new signals fired.
NWE's lead narrowed by 1 AIQ points in the latest snapshot.
Deeper signal detail for each name lives on its own signals page — NWE and NWN both carry a full feed there.
The central trade-off
NWE (Northwestern Energy Group Inc): the stronger current systematic profile, led by quality and momentum.
NWN (Northwest Natural Holding Company): the counter-case, on value, valuation, analyst expectations.
The AIQ Score and Wall Street therefore point in different directions on this pair.
Which one fits your objective
The same two names rank differently depending on what you are optimizing for. All six reads are shown at once — none of them is hidden behind a toggle.
Balanced
NWENWE on the overall AIQ Score, which weights Quality and Value most heavily.
Growth
NWENWE on combined revenue and EPS growth.
Value
NWNNWN on the peer-relative Value factor, by 8 points.
Momentum
NWENWE on the Momentum factor, by 13 points.
Lower downside
NWNNWN carries the lower 1-month annualized volatility.
Analyst upside
NWNNWN on implied upside to the consensus price target.
AIQ vs Wall Street
The model and the Street disagree here: AIQ favors NWE, analyst targets favor NWN. That disagreement is the most useful thing on this page.
| Measure | NWE | NWN | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Implied upside to target | -8% | +11.5% | NWN has more room |
| Target dispersion | +33% | +14.8% | Lower is tighter analyst agreement |
| Consensus | Buy | Buy | Context, not a primary driver |
| Analysts covering | 2 | 2 | Higher coverage generally improves confidence |
The two are measuring different things. The AIQ Score reads current fundamentals, valuation, trend and risk; analyst targets price forward expectations. A divergence of this kind is either a contrarian opportunity or a sign the model is missing something already priced in — it is worth resolving before acting on either.
Analyst targets are expectations, not predictions. Dispersion matters as much as the midpoint.
AIQ Agreement Matrix
3 of 6 covered evidence groups favor NWE. A wide gap backed by one group is a weaker case than a narrow gap backed by five.
| Evidence group | Favors | Reading |
|---|---|---|
| AIQ Score | NWE | 49 vs 44 |
| Fundamentals | NWEon balance | revenue growth -21.1% vs -50.3%; EPS growth -60.2% vs -99.4%; TTM ROE 5.9% vs 8.3%; gross margin 66.5% vs 45.2%; operating margin 18.8% vs 31.6% — NWE takes 3 of 5 decided legs, not all of them |
| Valuation | NWN | Value 53 vs 61 |
| Technicals | NWE | Price vs 50-day -2.5% vs -3.4%; vs 200-day 1.1% vs -1.6% |
| Risk Resilience | Even | Risk Resilience 51 vs 52 |
| Analyst expectations | NWN | Target upside -8% vs 11.5% |
✓ agrees with the overall verdict · ✕ points the other way. Groups marked “not covered” lack data on one or both of NWE and NWN and are excluded from the count.
AIQ Decision Stability
The conclusion is sensitive to small changes. Treat the lead as provisional and watch the flip conditions below.
- The AIQ gap is narrow at 5 points. (argues the conclusion is provisional)
- Only 3 of 6 covered evidence groups agree. (argues the conclusion is provisional)
- The lead has already changed hands inside the comparison window. (argues the conclusion is provisional)
- The leader's signal state is cleanly positive. (supports the conclusion holding)
Stability combines the score gap, how broadly the evidence agrees, how steady the lead has been across daily snapshots, the current signal state on both names, and analyst dispersion on NWE.
How the comparison changed
119 daily snapshots · May 4 – Sep 10NWE lead: Reversed — NWN led by 2 AIQ points 30 sessions ago; NWE now leads by 5.
- Today
- NWE +5
- 49 vs 44
- 7 sessions ago
- NWE +6
- 50 vs 44
- 30 sessions ago
- NWN +2
- 50 vs 52
- 90 sessions ago
- Level
- 48 vs 48
The lead changed hands 12 times in this window, most recently on Aug 25 when NWE moved ahead of NWN.
AIQ Signal Divergence
Only the signals that bear on the head-to-head. A conflicted name is carrying bullish and bearish rules at the same time — the technical evidence is not pointing one way.
2 bullish / 0 bearish / 1 neutral
- Golden Cross Active — bullish, trend, long horizon (2.49%)
- Bollinger Band Squeeze — neutral, volatility, short horizon
- MACD Bullish Crossover — bullish, momentum, short horizon
1 bullish / 1 bearish / 1 neutral, conflicted
- Golden Cross Active — bullish, trend, long horizon (0.48%)
- Bollinger Band Squeeze — neutral, volatility, short horizon
- MACD Bearish Crossover — bearish, momentum, short horizon
NWN is conflicted, so the timing case there is weaker than the score alone suggests.
Price vs model alignment
Whether the latest session's price move confirms what the model did over the same session, or contradicts it.
Price and the AIQ Score both moved down over the latest session (price -1.1%, AIQ -1 points).
Neither the price nor the AIQ Score moved enough in the latest session to confirm or contradict the other (price -1.26%, AIQ 0 points).
What would flip this result
A state, not a forecast. These are the specific, observable changes that would reverse the verdict — not a price prediction.
- 1NWN closes the Quality gap — currently 14 points behind, the largest single contributor to NWE's edge.
- 2NWN's MACD Bearish Crossover resolves — a bearish momentum rule currently active against it.
- 3NWE's Golden Cross Active breaks down — it is the strongest rule currently supporting the verdict.
- 4A regime shift changes factor weighting — Quality and Value carry the heaviest weights in the composite, so a rotation toward either would move the result most.
The full evidence
Every number behind the verdict. The leader is called above each group so you are not left to solve it from the table.
Fundamentals
NWE leads on balance| Metric | NWE | NWN |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue growth (YoY) | -21.1% | -50.3% |
| EPS growth (YoY) | -60.2% | -99.4% |
| Gross margin | 66.5% | 45.2% |
| Operating margin | 18.8% | 31.6% |
| Return on equity (TTM) | 5.9% | 8.3% |
| Debt to equity | 1.24 | 1.73 |
Performance
NWE leads 6 of 6 windows| Metric | NWE | NWN |
|---|---|---|
| 1 week (5 sessions) | -0.3% | -0.4% |
| 1 month (20 sessions) | -0.8% | -2.5% |
| 3 months (63 sessions) | 0.4% | -1.9% |
| 6 months (126 sessions) | 4.5% | -4.8% |
| Year to date | 8.5% | 5% |
| 1 year (252 sessions) | 24% | 19.1% |
Technicals
NWE has the stronger structure| Metric | NWE | NWN |
|---|---|---|
| RSI (14) | 46.1 | 38.3 |
| ADX (14) | 10 | 7.5 |
| Price vs 50-day | -2.5% | -3.4% |
| Price vs 200-day | 1.1% | -1.6% |
| Volatility (1M, annualized) | 17.7% | 16.7% |
Risk
Split| Metric | NWE | NWN |
|---|---|---|
| Beta | 0.06 | -0.35 |
| Sharpe ratio | 0.87 | 0.75 |
| Sortino ratio | 1.33 | 1.01 |
| Max drawdown | -11% | -14.3% |
| Current drawdown | -4.6% | -12.1% |
| Annualized volatility | 23% | 20.7% |
| Value at risk (95%) | -2.2% | -2% |
Straight answers
Each answer is regenerated from the current snapshot, not written once and left to age.
Which is better, NWE or NWN?
On the Algovestiq AIQ Score, NWE is the stronger of the two as of Sep 11, 2026, scoring 49 against NWN's 44. The edge comes from quality and momentum. NWN is not without a case — it holds the better value profile, which matters more if that is the objective you are optimizing for. This is a systematic score, not a recommendation: it ranks the two on the same evidence, it does not know your holding period or tax position.
Is NWE or NWN the better buy right now?
NWE carries the stronger systematic profile as of Sep 11, 2026, and the comparison is rated Fragile — 3 of 6 covered evidence groups agree. A Fragile rating means the conclusion is sensitive: the AIQ gap is narrow at 5 points. Treat the lead as provisional.
Why does the AIQ Score favor NWE over NWN?
The composite weights Quality, Value, Momentum and Risk Resilience. NWE leads Quality by 14 points; NWE leads Momentum by 13 points; NWN leads Value by 8 points. Where the two split, the factor with the larger weight carries the result.
Which has more analyst upside, NWE or NWN?
Analyst price targets imply -8% upside for NWE and +11.5% for NWN, so the Street currently favors NWN. That points the opposite way to the AIQ Score, which favors NWE. The two are measuring different things: the model reads current fundamentals, valuation, trend and risk; the Street is pricing forward expectations. A divergence of this kind is either a contrarian opportunity or a sign the model is missing something the analysts have already priced — it is the single most useful row on this page to investigate. Analyst targets are expectations, not predictions, and dispersion matters as much as the midpoint.
Which is better value, NWE or NWN?
NWN is the better-valued of the two on the peer-relative Value factor. NWN on the peer-relative Value factor, by 8 points. The Value factor reads valuation relative to sector peers and to the company's own fundamental quality, so it is not the same as simply having the lower multiple.
Which has stronger growth, NWE or NWN?
NWE on combined revenue and EPS growth. Growth here is measured on reported revenue and earnings, not on forward estimates — it describes what the businesses have delivered, not what the Street expects next.
Which has stronger momentum, NWE or NWN?
NWE on the Momentum factor, by 13 points. Momentum is one of the four weighted factors in the AIQ composite. It has documented persistence over three- to twelve-month horizons, which makes it a timing input rather than a reason to hold something indefinitely.
Which is riskier, NWE or NWN?
NWN is the more resilient of the two, so the other name carries the higher downside risk. NWN carries the lower 1-month annualized volatility. Risk Resilience is a weighted factor in the composite; position sizing usually responds to it more usefully than the buy/avoid decision does.
Is NWE more profitable than NWN?
The profitability evidence is mixed: gross margin 66.5% vs 45.2%; operating margin 18.8% vs 31.6%; ttm roe 5.9% vs 8.3%. NWE leads on one measure and NWN on two measures, and there is no single profitability composite that resolves the split — which of the two reads as "more profitable" depends on whether you weight pricing power or operating leverage.
Is NWE's lead over NWN getting stronger or weaker?
NWE lead: Reversed — NWN led by 2 AIQ points 30 sessions ago; NWE now leads by 5. This is measured from 119 daily comparison snapshots between 2026-05-04 and 2026-09-10. The lead has changed hands 12 times in that window, most recently on 2026-08-25, when NWE moved ahead of NWN.
What would change the NWE vs NWN verdict?
The result is a state, not a forecast, so it changes when the underlying evidence changes. Concretely: NWN closes the Quality gap — currently 14 points behind, the largest single contributor to NWE's edge; NWN's MACD Bearish Crossover resolves — a bearish momentum rule currently active against it; NWE's Golden Cross Active breaks down — it is the strongest rule currently supporting the verdict; a regime shift changes factor weighting — Quality and Value carry the heaviest weights in the composite, so a rotation toward either would move the result most.
What do the current signals say about NWE and NWN?
NWE: 2 bullish / 0 bearish / 1 neutral. NWN: 1 bullish / 1 bearish / 1 neutral, conflicted. A conflicted state means bullish and bearish rules are active on the same name at once — the technical evidence is not pointing one way, and a decision taken on it carries more timing risk. The most decision-relevant rule on NWE is Golden Cross Active (bullish, long horizon). On NWN it is Golden Cross Active (bullish, long horizon).
Compare NWE and NWN with others
Continue your research
This page answers which of the two. These answer the questions on either side of it.
How this comparison is scored
The Algovestiq AIQ Score composites four factors — Quality, Value, Momentum and Risk, each carrying a fixed weight. Sentiment is reported separately as SentimentPulse and is not folded into the composite. Scores refresh every trading day, and this page regenerates from the latest snapshot rather than being written once.
The verdict names a leader, states how broadly six independent evidence groups agree, and rates how durable that conclusion is given the score gap, its recent trajectory and the current signal state on both names.
How to use side-by-side comparison →This comparison is informational and educational, not investment advice. AIQ scores update daily; re-check after earnings, guidance or macro data that materially changes either name’s factor profile.