CMS Energy Co. (NYSE:CMS) Stake Cut by Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co.

Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co. reduced its stake in shares of CMS Energy Co. (NYSE:CMS) by 7.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,433,047 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 109,620 shares during the quarter. Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co.’s holdings in CMS Energy were worth $95,513,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in CMS. Cerity Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of CMS Energy by 35.5% during the 3rd quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 26,566 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,876,000 after purchasing an additional 6,959 shares in the last quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. raised its position in CMS Energy by 9.2% during the 3rd quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 50,887 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $3,594,000 after purchasing an additional 4,271 shares during the last quarter. Private Trust Co. NA boosted its stake in CMS Energy by 25.6% during the third quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 982 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $69,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company boosted its position in shares of CMS Energy by 1.2% during the third quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 189,442 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $13,380,000 after buying an additional 2,331 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Brooklyn Investment Group bought a new position in CMS Energy in the 3rd quarter valued at $40,000. 93.57% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

CMS Energy Stock Performance

NYSE:CMS opened at $73.16 on Friday. CMS Energy Co. has a fifty-two week low of $56.61 and a fifty-two week high of $75.06. The company has a market cap of $21.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.04, a PEG ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80, a quick ratio of 0.57 and a current ratio of 0.79. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $70.35 and a 200-day moving average price of $69.23.

CMS Energy (NYSE:CMS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.86 by $0.01. CMS Energy had a net margin of 13.35% and a return on equity of 12.02%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that CMS Energy Co. will post 3.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CMS Energy Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 28th. Investors of record on Monday, February 17th were given a dividend of $0.5425 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. This is an increase from CMS Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.52. This represents a $2.17 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.97%. CMS Energy’s payout ratio is 65.36%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on CMS shares. StockNews.com raised CMS Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday. UBS Group lifted their price objective on CMS Energy from $77.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, March 21st. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on CMS Energy from $73.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday. Bank of America raised their target price on shares of CMS Energy from $73.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday. Finally, Guggenheim reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $69.00 target price on shares of CMS Energy in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $75.36.

Insider Activity at CMS Energy

In related news, CAO Scott B. Mcintosh sold 6,700 shares of CMS Energy stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.76, for a total transaction of $467,392.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 21,643 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,509,815.68. The trade was a 23.64 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Laura Wright sold 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.84, for a total value of $174,600.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 38,790 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,709,093.60. The trade was a 6.05 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 11,200 shares of company stock valued at $789,532. 0.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About CMS Energy

CMS Energy Corporation operates as an energy company primarily in Michigan. The company operates through three segments: Electric Utility; Gas Utility; and Enterprises. The Electric Utility segment is involved in the generation, purchase, transmission, distribution, and sale of electricity. This segment generates electricity through coal, wind, gas, renewable energy, oil, and nuclear sources.