This National Network (LSE:NG.) The company’s share price has fallen dramatically this summer, badly shaking confidence.

The most significant thing is that the power grid operator has overnight overturned some long-held assumptions.

The assumption was that it would do the same thing, year after year. That would generate consistent profits, with a vivid future. And the net result would be a stream of dividends lining the pockets of shareholders.

But that collapsed on May 23, and investors dumped the stock. I think that was a huge mistake.

A up-to-date beginning

We’ve almost all heard this by now, but National Grid surprised us with a £7bn up-to-date share issue on the day it announced its full-year results.

And oh my, the dividend has been restructured. Only slightly, but for many of us that would be unthinkable.

And now that it happened and I’ve had more time to think about it, I think we were wrong, that we were surprised. I don’t know about others, but in retrospect I know I was a bit naive.

The energy industry is in the midst of a major shake-up, we couldn’t miss it. We’re going to see more and more renewable energy sources. And that’s driving an augment in demand for infrastructure, both in terms of capacity and technology.

Of course, National Grid will have to invest heavily, not just to keep up, but to lead. And that will cost money.

The only mystery left to me is… why didn’t I see this coming?

Additional risk

Now that our complacent self-satisfaction has been shaken, what is to stop it from happening again? Well, I think we have to acknowledge that as a possibility.

If I buy National Grid shares, I will factor into my decision the chance of future up-to-date issues. And the risk of further dividend dilution in the future.

The other thing I think some of us may have missed is National Grid’s debt. Net debt at the end of 2023-24 was £43.6bn.

This is probably the factor that speaks most against buying the stock at the moment.

On the other hand, debt financing can be an effective financial approach. Especially if it is a company with stable long-term prospects for its business.

So maybe I shouldn’t worry too much about it?

Elephant

Let’s get back to the one thing most investors bought National Grid shares for. It’s the dividend.

Even after the turmoil of the last few months, we still expect a projected dividend yield of 5.7% for the current year. And isn’t that super attractive?

There are higher revenues, sure. But I think they are mostly associated with higher risk. And the forecasts show that National Grid’s payouts will return to stable growth after the rebasement.

Despite this up-to-date warning sign, I still think National Grid could be one of the best FTSE100 stocks for long-term investors to consider. Even now.