Black Hills (NYSE:BKH) Shares Gap Up After Analyst Upgrade

Shares of Black Hills Corporation (NYSE:BKH) gapped up before the market opened on Wednesday after BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on the stock from $83.00 to $86.00. The stock had previously closed at $70.74, but opened at $74.79. BMO Capital Markets currently has an outperform rating on the stock. Black Hills shares last traded at $75.9770, with a volume of 587,478 shares.

A number of other equities research analysts have also weighed in on the stock. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Black Hills from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Friday, July 24th. Bank of America raised their target price on shares of Black Hills from $87.00 to $97.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, September 21st. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Black Hills from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 8th. Freedom Broker raised shares of Black Hills from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $69.00 to $78.00 in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Oppenheimer set a $78.00 price target on Black Hills in a report on Thursday, June 11th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to MarketBeat, Black Hills presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $82.71.

Black Hills News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Black Hills this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Google data-center agreement creates a significant growth catalyst. Black Hills signed definitive agreements to serve Google’s planned Cheyenne, Wyoming, data center through 2048. The project is expected to require approximately $1.8 billion of investment from 2027 through 2029, including 564 megawatts of new natural-gas generation and management of a larger microgrid. The long-term contract provides greater revenue visibility and positions BKH as an important power supplier to the artificial-intelligence infrastructure buildout. Why Black Hills BKH Stock Is Up Today
• Positive Sentiment: Customer financing may reduce project and balance-sheet risk. Reports say Alphabet will directly support the project, including approximately $399 million in refundable advances for long-lead equipment. That funding could help Black Hills manage construction costs, while the contract’s long duration and capital-recovery provisions may reduce concerns about stranded assets and earnings volatility. The projected economics remain estimates and depend on successful execution and regulatory approvals. Alphabet’s 1.8 Billion Black Hills Deal Powers AI Data Center Push
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst sentiment improved. Freedom Broker upgraded BKH from “hold” to “buy” and raised its price target to $78 from $69, reinforcing the positive reaction to the Google agreement. The upgrade follows a recent earnings beat, when Black Hills reported quarterly EPS of $0.54 versus a $0.41 consensus estimate. Freedom Broker Upgrades Black Hills Corp
• Neutral Sentiment: Upcoming earnings event could add volatility. Black Hills scheduled the release of its 2026 third-quarter results and a conference call. Investors will likely focus on project timing, financing, capital spending, regulatory developments, and whether management updates its fiscal 2026 EPS guidance of $4.25–$4.45. Black Hills Corp Schedules 2026 Third-Quarter Earnings Release and Conference Call

Institutional Trading of Black Hills

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in Black Hills by 99.3% during the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,260 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $158,000 after acquiring an additional 1,126 shares in the last quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. increased its holdings in shares of Black Hills by 21.7% in the 3rd quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. now owns 267,370 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $18,737,000 after acquiring an additional 47,652 shares during the period. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Black Hills by 25.4% in the 2nd quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 21,332 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,587,000 after acquiring an additional 4,325 shares in the last quarter. WINTON GROUP Ltd bought a new position in shares of Black Hills in the 2nd quarter worth $2,342,000. Finally, Engineers Gate Manager LP lifted its stake in shares of Black Hills by 35.7% during the 2nd quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP now owns 1,442,064 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $107,290,000 after purchasing an additional 379,211 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.71% of the company’s stock.

Black Hills Stock Up 1.0%

The business has a 50 day moving average of $72.23 and a two-hundred day moving average of $72.95. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.84 billion, a PE ratio of 19.34, a PEG ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 0.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99, a quick ratio of 0.41 and a current ratio of 0.52.

Black Hills (NYSE:BKH) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The utilities provider reported $0.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.41 by $0.13. The company had revenue of $452.80 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $490.89 million. Black Hills had a return on equity of 7.98% and a net margin of 13.01%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 3.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.38 earnings per share. Black Hills has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.250-4.450 EPS. Analysts predict that Black Hills Corporation will post 4.34 EPS for the current year.

Black Hills Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Investors of record on Monday, August 17th were paid a dividend of $0.7030 per share. This represents a $2.81 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.7%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 17th. Black Hills’s payout ratio is 70.96%.

Black Hills Company Profile

Black Hills Corporation (NYSE:BKH) is a regulated utility holding company headquartered in Rapid City, South Dakota. Through its operating subsidiaries, the company provides electric and natural gas utility services to residential, commercial, industrial and other customers.

Black Hills owns and operates electric generation, transmission and distribution facilities, as well as natural gas distribution, storage and transportation infrastructure. Its electric utilities serve customers in Colorado, Montana, South Dakota and Wyoming, while its natural gas utilities operate in Arkansas, Colorado, Iowa, Kansas, Nebraska and Wyoming.

The company traces its history to the development of utility services in the Black Hills region and was incorporated as Black Hills Corporation in 1941.