FE vs. NI: FirstEnergy vs. NiSource Stock Comparison

November 11, 2026

How do FirstEnergy (FE) and NiSource (NI) stack up? This page sets them side by side across company profile, performance and risk, profitability, growth, financial strength, dividends, and valuation, with selected fundamentals also measured against each stock's industry-group peers.

Company Profile

FirstEnergy (FE) and NiSource (NI) both fall under the Utilities industry group, but FE is classified in Electric Utilities while NI is classified in Multi-Utilities.

Company profile comparison for FirstEnergy (FE) and NiSource (NI)
Profile Item	FE	NI
Name	FirstEnergy Corp.	NiSource Inc.
Country/Region	United States	United States
GICS Sector	Utilities	Utilities
GICS Industry Group	Utilities	Utilities
GICS Industry	Electric Utilities	Multi-Utilities
GICS Sub-Industry	Electric Utilities	Multi-Utilities
Market Capitalization	26.88 billion USD	21.18 billion USD
Currency	USD	USD
Exchange	NYSE	NYSE
Listing Date	November 10, 1997	February 21, 1973
Security Type	Common Stock	Common Stock

Price Performance

Cumulative Growth

GSPC

FirstEnergy (FE) vs. NiSource (NI), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Growth of a $10,000 investment over the past five years. Adjusted for dividends and splits.

Trailing Returns

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Trailing total returns for FirstEnergy (FE) and NiSource (NI). Returns over one year are annualized.

Calendar-Year Returns

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Calendar-year total returns for FirstEnergy (FE) and NiSource (NI). Each bar is that year's total return, measured year-end to year-end.

Performance Metrics

Price performance metrics for FirstEnergy (FE) and NiSource (NI)
Metric	FE	NI
Total Return (1Y)	5.62%	6.11%
Total Return (3Y, Annualized)	14.20%	25.66%
Total Return (5Y, Annualized)	8.32%	16.11%

Risk Profile

Drawdown History

GSPC

FirstEnergy (FE) vs. NiSource (NI), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Drawdown from the running peak over the past five years. Each line shows the decline from its prior peak; 0% marks a new high.

Return Distribution

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Distribution of monthly total returns for FirstEnergy (FE) and NiSource (NI). Each bar is the share of months whose return fell in that 5% bucket.

Risk Metrics

Risk profile metrics for FirstEnergy (FE) and NiSource (NI)
Metric	FE	NI
Volatility (1Y, Annualized)	16.31%	18.23%
Beta (5Y)	0.39	0.53
Max Drawdown (5Y)	-28.59%	-24.76%
Avg. Volume (3M)	4.29M	5.64M

Risk-Adjusted Performance

Risk-Return Positioning

FE and NI are plotted by 1-year volatility (risk) and 1-year return. The dashed Capital Allocation Line runs from the risk-free rate through the shared industry median.

Risk-Adjusted Metrics

Risk-adjusted metrics for FirstEnergy (FE) and NiSource (NI)
Metric	FE	NI
Sharpe Ratio (1Y)	0.08	0.10
Sortino Ratio (1Y)	0.11	0.14

Profitability

ROE (TTM)

Both FirstEnergy (FE) at 10.04% and NiSource (NI) at 8.71% land near their industries’ usual ROE ranges, so capital efficiency looks broadly in line with peers on both sides.

FE

Utilities industry group

10.04%

Max: 17.99%
Q3: 12.01%
FE: 10.04%
Median: 9.44%
Q1: 7.56%
Min: 2.17%

NI

Utilities industry group

8.71%

Max: 17.99%
Q3: 12.01%
Median: 9.44%
NI: 8.71%
Q1: 7.56%
Min: 2.17%

FirstEnergy (FE) vs. NiSource (NI): A comparison of their ROE against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

Net Margin (TTM)

NiSource (NI) at 13.51% keeps about the industry-typical share of revenue as profit, while FirstEnergy (FE) at 7.49% retains only a bottom-quartile share.

FE

Utilities industry group

7.49%

Max: 28.78%
Q3: 17.30%
Median: 12.73%
Q1: 9.18%
FE: 7.49%
Min: -0.20%

NI

Utilities industry group

13.51%

Max: 28.78%
Q3: 17.30%
NI: 13.51%
Median: 12.73%
Q1: 9.18%
Min: -0.20%

FirstEnergy (FE) vs. NiSource (NI): A comparison of their net margin against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

Operating Margin (TTM)

Both FirstEnergy (FE) at 21.24% and NiSource (NI) at 25.20% run core operations about as efficiently as their industries’ norm — neither stands out on operating profitability.

FE

Utilities industry group

21.24%

Max: 53.83%
Q3: 31.12%
Median: 23.62%
FE: 21.24%
Q1: 15.45%
Min: -4.90%

NI

Utilities industry group

25.20%

Max: 53.83%
Q3: 31.12%
NI: 25.20%
Median: 23.62%
Q1: 15.45%
Min: -4.90%

FirstEnergy (FE) vs. NiSource (NI): A comparison of their operating margin against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

Profitability Metrics

Profitability metrics for FirstEnergy (FE) and NiSource (NI)
Metric	FE	NI
ROE (TTM)	10.04%	8.71%
ROA (TTM)	3.66%	3.25%
Net Margin (TTM)	7.49%	13.51%
Operating Margin (TTM)	21.24%	25.20%
Gross Margin (TTM)	69.63%	50.92%

Growth

Revenue Growth

NiSource (NI) at 21.76% sits in the top revenue growth quartile, while FirstEnergy (FE) at 12.01% is closer to the peer norm — faster top-line expansion for NI.

FirstEnergy (FE) vs. NiSource (NI): A comparison of their Revenue Growth across different time periods.

EPS Growth

NiSource (NI) at 20.37% sits in the top EPS growth quartile, while FirstEnergy (FE) at 3.53% is closer to the peer norm — faster per-share earnings growth for NI.

FirstEnergy (FE) vs. NiSource (NI): A comparison of their EPS Growth across different time periods.

Growth Metrics

Growth metrics for FirstEnergy (FE) and NiSource (NI)
Metric	FE	NI
Revenue Growth (YoY)	12.01%	21.76%
Revenue Growth (3Y CAGR)	6.59%	4.32%
EPS Growth (YoY)	3.53%	20.37%
EPS Growth (3Y CAGR)	35.34%	4.68%

Financial Strength

Current Ratio (MRQ)

Both FirstEnergy (FE) at 0.38 and NiSource (NI) at 0.50 run current ratio in the tighter-liquidity quartile of industry peers, leaving thinner cushions against current liabilities than typical competitors.

FE

Utilities industry group

0.38

Max: 1.90
Q3: 1.17
Median: 0.88
Q1: 0.66
FE: 0.38
Min: 0.29

NI

Utilities industry group

0.50

Max: 1.90
Q3: 1.17
Median: 0.88
Q1: 0.66
NI: 0.50
Min: 0.29

FirstEnergy (FE) vs. NiSource (NI): A comparison of their current ratio against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

Debt / Equity (MRQ)

NiSource (NI) at 1.53 carries an industry-typical debt-to-equity mix, while FirstEnergy (FE) at 2.07 uses more debt funding than most peers.

FE

Utilities industry group

2.07

Max: 2.63
FE: 2.07
Q3: 1.77
Median: 1.35
Q1: 0.84
Min: 0.00

NI

Utilities industry group

1.53

Max: 2.63
Q3: 1.77
NI: 1.53
Median: 1.35
Q1: 0.84
Min: 0.00

FirstEnergy (FE) vs. NiSource (NI): A comparison of their debt-to-equity ratio against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

Financial Strength Metrics

Financial strength metrics for FirstEnergy (FE) and NiSource (NI)
Metric	FE	NI
Current Ratio (MRQ)	0.38	0.50
Debt / Equity (MRQ)	2.07	1.53
Net Debt / EBITDA	5.85	5.87

Dividends

Dividend Yield (TTM)

FirstEnergy (FE) at 3.90% delivers top-quartile income for its industry, while NiSource (NI) at 0.68% pays a more typical yield — both are credible income propositions, FE the richer one.

FE

Utilities industry group

3.90%

Max: 6.66%
FE: 3.90%
Q3: 3.58%
Median: 2.85%
Q1: 0.66%
Min: 0.00%

NI

Utilities industry group

0.68%

Max: 6.66%
Q3: 3.58%
Median: 2.85%
NI: 0.68%
Q1: 0.66%
Min: 0.00%

FirstEnergy (FE) vs. NiSource (NI): A comparison of their dividend yield against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)

NiSource (NI) at 60.51% pays out a band-typical share of earnings, while FirstEnergy (FE) at 87.92% distributes more than its industry norm — less retained, thinner cover.

FE

Utilities industry group

87.92%

Max: 113.04%
FE: 87.92%
Q3: 68.72%
Median: 56.38%
Q1: 32.38%
Min: 0.00%

NI

Utilities industry group

60.51%

Max: 113.04%
Q3: 68.72%
NI: 60.51%
Median: 56.38%
Q1: 32.38%
Min: 0.00%

FirstEnergy (FE) vs. NiSource (NI): A comparison of their payout ratio against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

Dividend Metrics

Dividend metrics for FirstEnergy (FE) and NiSource (NI)
Metric	FE	NI
Dividend Yield (TTM)	3.90%	0.68%
Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)	87.92%	60.51%

Valuation

P/E Ratio (TTM)

Both FirstEnergy (FE) at 22.43 and NiSource (NI) at 22.64 land around their industries’ usual P/E ratio levels — neither is getting a clear earnings-multiple discount or premium versus peers.

FE

Utilities industry group

22.43

Max: 31.22
Q3: 23.30
FE: 22.43
Median: 19.64
Q1: 15.17
Min: 3.34

NI

Utilities industry group

22.64

Max: 31.22
Q3: 23.30
NI: 22.64
Median: 19.64
Q1: 15.17
Min: 3.34

FirstEnergy (FE) vs. NiSource (NI): A comparison of their P/E ratio against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

P/S Ratio (TTM)

On P/S ratio, both FirstEnergy (FE) at 1.68 and NiSource (NI) at 3.04 are priced roughly in line with their industries — neither looks cheap nor rich on a sales basis.

FE

Utilities industry group

1.68

Max: 6.35
Q3: 3.63
Median: 2.63
FE: 1.68
Q1: 1.52
Min: 0.00

NI

Utilities industry group

3.04

Max: 6.35
Q3: 3.63
NI: 3.04
Median: 2.63
Q1: 1.52
Min: 0.00

FirstEnergy (FE) vs. NiSource (NI): A comparison of their P/S ratio against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

P/B Ratio (MRQ)

On P/B ratio, both FirstEnergy (FE) at 2.07 and NiSource (NI) at 2.21 are valued close to their industries’ norm against book — neither stands out from peers.

FE

Utilities industry group

2.07

Max: 3.12
Q3: 2.21
FE: 2.07
Median: 1.83
Q1: 1.46
Min: 0.34

NI

Utilities industry group

2.21

Max: 3.12
Q3: 2.21
NI: 2.21
Median: 1.83
Q1: 1.46
Min: 0.34

FirstEnergy (FE) vs. NiSource (NI): A comparison of their P/B ratio against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

Valuation Metrics

Valuation metrics for FirstEnergy (FE) and NiSource (NI)
Metric	FE	NI
P/E Ratio (TTM)	22.43	22.64
P/S Ratio (TTM)	1.68	3.04
P/B Ratio (MRQ)	2.07	2.21
Free Cash Flow Yield (TTM)	-9.48%	-10.51%