MDU Resources vs Northwest Natural
MDU and NWN side by side, both in gas production and distribution. Figures are trailing twelve months unless noted, from SEC filings and end-of-day prices.
How MDU and NWN compare
MDU Resources is the larger company, worth 1.9 times as much as Northwest Natural ($4.1B against $2.2B).
On earnings, Northwest Natural is cheaper: it trades at 17.4× trailing earnings, against 21.1× for MDU Resources.
Northwest Natural grew revenue faster over the last twelve months (4.4% versus −0.72% for MDU Resources).
MDU Resources keeps more of each dollar of sales as profit, with a net margin of 10.3% compared with 9.7% at Northwest Natural.
Both pay dividends: MDU Resources yields 2.9% and Northwest Natural 2.8%.
Northwest Natural scores higher on the StockData Score (9 against 6 for MDU Resources), which adds up 30 checks on valuation, growth, past performance, financial health and dividends.
Key numbers
A dot marks the better figure where higher or lower is clearly better.
| Metric | MDU | NWN |
|---|---|---|
| Size and price | ||
| Market cap | $4.1B | $2.2B |
| Share price | $19.59 | $52.11 |
| Change, 1 year | −7.5% | 8.3% |
| Change, 5 years | −31.2% | 14.3% |
| Beta (5Y) | 0.64 | 0.28 |
| Employees | 2,096 | 40 |
| StockData Score | ||
| Total score | 6 | 9 (better) |
| Valuation score | 2 | 3 (better) |
| Growth score | 2 (better) | 1 |
| Performance score | 0 | 2 (better) |
| Health score | 0 | 0 |
| Dividend score | 2 | 3 (better) |
| Valuation | ||
| P/E | 21.1× | 17.4× (better) |
| P/S | 2.2× | 1.7× (better) |
| P/B | 1.4× (better) | 1.4× |
| EV/EBITDA | 12.5× | 10.3× (better) |
| PEG | – | 5.93 |
| FCF yield | −7.8% (better) | −12.1% |
| Fair value | $18.48 | $54.68 |
| Margin of safety | −6.0% | 4.7% (better) |
| Growth | ||
| Revenue growth (TTM) | −0.72% | 4.4% (better) |
| Revenue growth, 5Y average | −19.5% | 10.8% (better) |
| Net income growth (TTM) | 13.8% | 22.0% (better) |
| EPS growth (TTM) | 12.0% | 18.6% (better) |
| EPS growth, 5Y average | −13.8% | 2.0% (better) |
| Profitability | ||
| Operating margin | 17.1% | 22.8% (better) |
| Net margin | 10.3% (better) | 9.7% |
| FCF margin | −17.2% (better) | −20.6% |
| Return on equity | 6.8% | 8.3% (better) |
| Return on invested capital | 5.5% | 5.9% (better) |
| Financial health | ||
| Debt / equity | 0.87 (better) | 1.68 |
| Net debt / EBITDA | 4.80 (better) | 5.56 |
| Interest coverage | 2.5× | – |
| Current ratio | 0.88 (better) | 0.77 |
| Altman Z-score | 1.07 (better) | 0.70 |
| Piotroski F-score | 4 | 5 (better) |
| Dividends and buybacks | ||
| Dividend yield | 2.9% (better) | 2.8% |
| Payout ratio | 59.9% | 62.7% |
| Years of dividend growth | 1 | 9 (better) |
| Dividend growth, 5Y average | −8.3% | 0.52% (better) |
| Buyback yield | −4.1% | −2.1% (better) |
| Shareholder yield | −1.2% | 0.78% (better) |
| Ownership | ||
| Held by institutions | 92.3% | 80.9% |
| Held by insiders | 0.81% | 0.60% |
| Insider net buying, 12 months | $104K (better) | −$384K |
| Short interest, % of float | 9.0% | 5.7% |
Go deeper
- MDU stock overview
- MDU income statement
- MDU valuation and score
- NWN stock overview
- NWN income statement
- NWN valuation and score
For information only, not investment advice. Check the source filings before relying on any figure.