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Side-by-side financial comparison of Essex Property Trust (ESS) and NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc. (NWE). Click either name above to swap in a different company.

NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc. is the larger business by last-quarter revenue ($497.6M vs $479.6M, roughly 1.0× Essex Property Trust). Essex Property Trust runs the higher net margin — 17.9% vs 12.8%, a 5.1% gap on every dollar of revenue. On growth, NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc. posted the faster year-over-year revenue change (6.6% vs 5.5%). Over the past eight quarters, NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc.'s revenue compounded faster (24.7% CAGR vs 6.0%).

Essex Property Trust is a publicly traded real estate investment trust that invests in apartments in California and in the Seattle metropolitan area.

NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc. is a utility company that serves South Dakota, Nebraska, and Montana that is based in Sioux Falls. As of 2019, the company serves approximately 718,000 customers. The company's corporate headquarters are located in Sioux Falls while the headquarters for the South Dakota operations are in Huron, South Dakota.

ESS vs NWE — Head-to-Head

Bigger by revenue
NWE
NWE
1.0× larger
NWE
$497.6M
$479.6M
ESS
Growing faster (revenue YoY)
NWE
NWE
+1.1% gap
NWE
6.6%
5.5%
ESS
Higher net margin
ESS
ESS
5.1% more per $
ESS
17.9%
12.8%
NWE
Faster 2-yr revenue CAGR
NWE
NWE
Annualised
NWE
24.7%
6.0%
ESS

Income Statement — Q4 FY2025 vs Q1 FY2026

Metric
ESS
ESS
NWE
NWE
Revenue
$479.6M
$497.6M
Net Profit
$85.7M
$63.5M
Gross Margin
70.0%
Operating Margin
31.7%
22.9%
Net Margin
17.9%
12.8%
Revenue YoY
5.5%
6.6%
Net Profit YoY
-71.6%
EPS (diluted)
$1.24

Green = leading value per metric. Periods may differ when fiscal calendars don't align.

8-Quarter Revenue & Profit Trend

Side-by-side quarterly history. Quarters aligned by calendar period so offset fiscal years line up.

Revenue
ESS
ESS
NWE
NWE
Q1 26
$497.6M
Q4 25
$479.6M
$414.3M
Q3 25
$473.3M
$387.0M
Q2 25
$469.8M
$342.7M
Q1 25
$464.6M
$466.6M
Q4 24
$454.5M
$373.5M
Q3 24
$450.7M
$345.2M
Q2 24
$442.4M
$319.9M
Net Profit
ESS
ESS
NWE
NWE
Q1 26
$63.5M
Q4 25
$85.7M
$44.7M
Q3 25
$172.7M
$38.2M
Q2 25
$231.5M
$21.2M
Q1 25
$212.8M
$76.9M
Q4 24
$301.7M
$80.6M
Q3 24
$125.5M
$46.8M
Q2 24
$99.0M
$31.7M
Gross Margin
ESS
ESS
NWE
NWE
Q1 26
Q4 25
70.0%
Q3 25
69.2%
Q2 25
70.7%
Q1 25
69.6%
Q4 24
70.0%
Q3 24
69.5%
Q2 24
70.8%
Operating Margin
ESS
ESS
NWE
NWE
Q1 26
22.9%
Q4 25
31.7%
14.5%
Q3 25
44.5%
20.7%
Q2 25
59.5%
17.7%
Q1 25
55.3%
26.7%
Q4 24
67.0%
24.6%
Q3 24
28.6%
19.7%
Q2 24
31.1%
19.3%
Net Margin
ESS
ESS
NWE
NWE
Q1 26
12.8%
Q4 25
17.9%
10.8%
Q3 25
36.5%
9.9%
Q2 25
49.3%
6.2%
Q1 25
45.8%
16.5%
Q4 24
66.4%
21.6%
Q3 24
27.8%
13.6%
Q2 24
22.4%
9.9%
EPS (diluted)
ESS
ESS
NWE
NWE
Q1 26
Q4 25
$1.24
$0.72
Q3 25
$2.56
$0.62
Q2 25
$3.44
$0.35
Q1 25
$3.16
$1.25
Q4 24
$4.00
$1.31
Q3 24
$1.84
$0.76
Q2 24
$1.45
$0.52

Balance Sheet & Financial Strength

Snapshot of each company's liquidity, leverage and book value from the latest quarter.

Metric
ESS
ESS
NWE
NWE
Cash + ST InvestmentsLiquidity on hand
$76.2M
Total DebtLower is stronger
Stockholders' EquityBook value
$5.5B
Total Assets
$13.2B
Debt / EquityLower = less leverage

8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.

Cash + ST Investments
ESS
ESS
NWE
NWE
Q1 26
Q4 25
$76.2M
$8.8M
Q3 25
$66.0M
$6.2M
Q2 25
$58.7M
$2.9M
Q1 25
$98.7M
$56.0M
Q4 24
$66.8M
$4.3M
Q3 24
$71.3M
$2.5M
Q2 24
$55.2M
$6.4M
Total Debt
ESS
ESS
NWE
NWE
Q1 26
Q4 25
$3.3B
Q3 25
$6.4B
Q2 25
$6.4B
Q1 25
$6.8B
Q4 24
$3.0B
Q3 24
$6.4B
Q2 24
$6.2B
Stockholders' Equity
ESS
ESS
NWE
NWE
Q1 26
Q4 25
$5.5B
$2.9B
Q3 25
$5.6B
$2.9B
Q2 25
$5.6B
$2.9B
Q1 25
$5.6B
$2.9B
Q4 24
$5.5B
$2.9B
Q3 24
$5.4B
$2.8B
Q2 24
$5.5B
$2.8B
Total Assets
ESS
ESS
NWE
NWE
Q1 26
Q4 25
$13.2B
$8.5B
Q3 25
$13.2B
$8.3B
Q2 25
$13.2B
$8.1B
Q1 25
$13.2B
$8.1B
Q4 24
$12.9B
$8.0B
Q3 24
$12.6B
$7.9B
Q2 24
$12.5B
$7.7B
Debt / Equity
ESS
ESS
NWE
NWE
Q1 26
Q4 25
1.14×
Q3 25
1.15×
Q2 25
1.14×
Q1 25
1.22×
Q4 24
1.05×
Q3 24
1.18×
Q2 24
1.13×

Cash Flow & Capital Efficiency

How much cash each business actually produces after reinvestment. Cash flow is harder to manipulate than net income.

Metric
ESS
ESS
NWE
NWE
Operating Cash FlowLast quarter
$1.1B
Free Cash FlowOCF − Capex
FCF MarginFCF / Revenue
Capex IntensityCapex / Revenue
Cash ConversionOCF / Net Profit
12.53×
TTM Free Cash FlowTrailing 4 quarters

8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.

Operating Cash Flow
ESS
ESS
NWE
NWE
Q1 26
Q4 25
$1.1B
$56.2M
Q3 25
$342.6M
$126.7M
Q2 25
$216.1M
$58.2M
Q1 25
$281.5M
$153.4M
Q4 24
$1.1B
$62.8M
Q3 24
$316.2M
$120.0M
Q2 24
$218.9M
$62.3M
Free Cash Flow
ESS
ESS
NWE
NWE
Q1 26
Q4 25
$-93.7M
Q3 25
$-26.9M
Q2 25
$-70.6M
Q1 25
$61.3M
Q4 24
$-85.9M
Q3 24
$-33.2M
Q2 24
$-76.3M
FCF Margin
ESS
ESS
NWE
NWE
Q1 26
Q4 25
-22.6%
Q3 25
-6.9%
Q2 25
-20.6%
Q1 25
13.1%
Q4 24
-23.0%
Q3 24
-9.6%
Q2 24
-23.9%
Capex Intensity
ESS
ESS
NWE
NWE
Q1 26
Q4 25
36.2%
Q3 25
39.7%
Q2 25
37.6%
Q1 25
19.7%
Q4 24
39.8%
Q3 24
44.4%
Q2 24
43.3%
Cash Conversion
ESS
ESS
NWE
NWE
Q1 26
Q4 25
12.53×
1.26×
Q3 25
1.98×
3.31×
Q2 25
0.93×
2.74×
Q1 25
1.32×
1.99×
Q4 24
3.54×
0.78×
Q3 24
2.52×
2.56×
Q2 24
2.21×
1.97×

Financial Flow Comparison

Revenue → gross profit → operating profit → net profit for each company.

Revenue Breakdown by Segment

ESS
ESS

Segment breakdown not available.

NWE
NWE

Electric$362.1M73%
Gas$135.5M27%

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