Black Hills

The board of Black Hills has declared a quarterly dividend of $0.703 per common share. Shareholders of record at the close of business on August 17, 2026, will be eligible; payment will be made on September 1, 2026. Black Hills also announced it will release Q2 2026 results on August 5 after the market close and will hold a conference call with webcast on August 6 at 11:00 a.m. EDT. » More on de.investing.com

Black Hills' stock rose about 5.3% after the update, after the company confirmed that the 1.8-gigawatt data center project will proceed as planned despite the departure of development partner Crusoe. Black Hills is now working directly with the potential major customer, expects commissioning in early 2028, and has reached agreements on generation facilities and a substation. The customer has provided more than $200 million in reimbursable construction grants, and the power supply is to be delivered under the Large Power Contract Service Tariff. » More on de.investing.com

Black Hills reported a decline in earnings for Q1 2026, mainly due to one of the warmest winters in its service territories; adjusted EPS was $1.79 and missed analysts' expectations, and revenue also fell short of forecasts. Management reaffirmed the full-year outlook of $4.25–4.45 adjusted EPS and highlighted strong financial metrics with investment-grade ratings and net leverage of 54.0%. The proposed merger with NorthWestern Energy is progressing through regulatory review, the company remains committed to an extensive capital investment program, and sees growth opportunities particularly from a data-center pipeline of more than 3 GW. » More on de.investing.com

BMO Capital reiterated an Outperform rating on Black Hills Corporation and lifted its price target to $91 from $84 after Microsoft agreed to buy 3,200 acres in Cheyenne for a data center that Black Hills will help power. The company cites a data center pipeline exceeding 3 GW, including 600 MW by 2030, and expects additional upside from Meta's planned AI data center. Black Hills reported solid Q1 2026 adjusted earnings of $135.1 million, or $1.79 per share, supporting its growth outlook in utility-scale data center demand. » More on finance.yahoo.com

Black Hills reported Q1 adjusted EPS of $1.79, down from $1.87 a year earlier, and said an unusually warm winter reduced demand by $0.18 per share but left full-year adjusted EPS guidance of $4.25–$4.45 intact. Management cited cost controls, new rates and rider recovery for offsetting the weather impact and reaffirmed targets for investment-grade credit metrics and a 55–65% dividend payout range; the company extended its streak of annual dividend increases to 56 years. The pending merger with NorthWestern Energy has cleared shareholder votes and the HSR waiting period, and Black Hills expects to close in the second half of 2026 pending remaining state and federal approvals. Large-load data center demand is a major growth driver, with a pipeline of more than 3 GW and 600 MW already included in the five-year plan, while major projects include the 99 MW Lange II plant and a 50 MW battery storage project. » More on finance.yahoo.com